matriarchal

adjective

ma·​tri·​ar·​chal ˌmā-trē-ˈär-kəl How to pronounce matriarchal (audio)
Synonyms of matriarchalnext
: of, relating to, or being a matriarch or matriarchy
a matriarchal society
Johnnie Angelia King … plays a very different matriarchal figure here, imbuing hard-working Faye with passion …—Larry T. Collins
As a Filipino-American, Lirio Marcelo was steeped in a matriarchal culture where there was no shortage of female role models in corporate and government realms.—Lydia Dishman

Examples of matriarchal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
There is a strong matriarchal figure whose presence dictates the course of action. — Christopher Smith, Oc Register, 9 May 2026 This matriarchal practice defines Tunisia’s food culture. — Boutheina Ben Salem, Vogue, 8 May 2026 Navajo society was matrilineal and matriarchal, and women had already long been involved in work outside the home. — Lua Vollaard, ARTnews.com, 24 June 2026 Sinclaire has an agent for a memoir, and Gonzalez is thinking about writing a book about matriarchal communities. — Kayla Levy, Curbed, 25 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for matriarchal

Word History

First Known Use

1780, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of matriarchal was in 1780

Rhymes for matriarchal

See All Rhymes for matriarchal

Browse Nearby Words

matriarch
matriarchal
matriarchate
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Matriarchal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/matriarchal. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on matriarchal

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for matriarchal

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All