matriarch

American  

[mey-tree-ahrk] / ˈmeɪ triˌɑrk /

noun

• matriarchs
  plural

1. the female head of a family or tribal line.

2. a woman who is the founder or dominant member of a community or group.

3. a venerable old woman.

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matriarch British  

/ ˈmeɪtrɪˌɑːk /

noun

1. a woman who dominates an organization, community, etc

2. the female head of a tribe or family, esp in a matriarchy

3. a very old or venerable woman

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• matriarchalism
  noun
• matriarchal
  adjective
• matriarchic
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• matriarchs
  plural

Etymology

Origin of matriarch

First recorded in 1600–10; matri- + -arch

Explanation

Rose Kennedy was the matriarch of the Kennedy clan — she was the female head of the family. This noun can also be used metaphorically. For instance, Alice Waters could be called the matriarch of Chez Panisse and the generation of chefs that her revolutionary restaurant inspired. Although matriarch was created as a parallel term to patriarch, this eighteenth-century new creation was based on a false etymology. Although patri- might look related to the Latin pater "father," it actually comes from the Greek patria "family." Presumably, it was assumed that such a person would be a man. In any case, patriarch has come to mean the male head of a family or clan, while matriarch is used if the head of a family or clan is female.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

matriarch matriarchs

Her grandmother, the first woman his grandfather married, presided as matriarch over a farm where the wives lived together, and often helped choose the newcomers herself.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

But the matriarch isn’t out of the woods yet after being found weak and unable to fly on the north shore of Big Bear Lake on July 18.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

Somehow, I found their phone number, and Julia, the matriarch, graciously agreed to my request for an interview.

From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026

Rhode Island’s Morticia, named for the Addams Family matriarch, spent much of its life as a single leaf stalk with multiple leaflets before going dormant, leaving what looked like a big pot of dirt.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026

Again and again, the matriarch of the household wipes my sadness away with the end of her sari.

From "You Bring the Distant Near" by Mitali Perkins

Our services are heavy on the patriarchs—and, for some, the matriarchs too.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 11, 2025

So yeah, that femme performance is so defining of how to hold yourself, to be erect because matriarchs are the oaks of families.

From New York Times ● Nov. 27, 2024

For nearly 70 years, she played Peggy Woolley in the long-running radio drama: one of the best-loved matriarchs in British broadcasting.

From BBC ● Nov. 8, 2024

Just as a human family suffers an irreparable loss when its elders pass away too soon, entire populations of elephants will be left leaderless and emotionally devastated as their wise matriarchs prematurely die off.

From Salon ● Feb. 6, 2024

I bit and clawed every hand that grabbed me, and howled protestations against going to school; however, I was no match for the two determined matriarchs.

From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane

Related Words

• matron