mafia
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Mafia¹
- /ˈmɑfi.ə/ US
- /ˈmæfi.ə/ UK
Where it comes from
Borrowed from Italian mafia, of uncertain origin. In the first instance, it is not clear whether the lemma in question is a Sicilian exonym or endonym, since written and oral sources on this term are scarce, the etymology remains uncertain and it's worthy of further investigation. It is possibly a regional term of the then recently established Kingdom of Italy; thus the meaning "spirit of hostility to the law" could be just derivative. The hypotheses put forward have been varied, but not very convincing from a reconstructive point of view. See Sicilian mafia for more. See, also, the Wikipedia article for more discussion of the origin of the word. Doublet of mafiya.
proper noun the Mafia · Maffia
-
The international criminal organization of Sicilian origin operating in Italy and the United States.
Similar: Mob, Cosa Nostra
-
Any other specific organized crime syndicate operating internationally in high-level organized crime; often with a modifying adjective, such as a nationality.
Somehow he managed to upset the Russian Mafia.
Similar: Mob
proper noun Maffia
- A social deduction party game modelling a conflict between an informed minority (the mafia) and an uninformed majority (the innocents). Each player is secretly assigned a role within one of these teams, and the innocents attempt to identify the mafia members before they are all "murdered".
mafia²
- /ˈmɑfi.ə/ US
- /ˈmæfi.ə/ UK
Where it comes from
See Mafia. The sense "entity which attempts to control a specified arena" makes an analogy to crime-syndicate mafias' attempts to control certain kinds of business in the regions in which they exist.
noun mafias · maffia
- A hierarchically structured secret organisation engaged in illegal activities like distribution of narcotics, gambling and extortion.
- A crime syndicate.
- A trusted group of associates, as of a political leader.
- An entity which attempts to control a specified arena by violence or threats. moral mafia
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: cosa nostra, maffia, sicilian mafia, mobster, syndicate, gangster, racketeering, mob, black, shay, underworld, triad, gangland, crime syndicate, organized crime, gang
Translations
Every language
name international criminal organisation of Sicilian origin
| 中文 | 黑手黨 /黑手党 hēishǒudǎng |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | Mafia |
| Italiano | Mafia |
| Ελληνικά | Μαφία Mafía |
| Română | Mafia |
| العربية | مافيا |
name party game
| 한국어 | 마피아 게임 mapia geim |
|---|
noun a crime syndicate
| Español | mafia |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 마피아 mapia |
| 日本語 | マフィア mafia, 秘密集団 himitsu shūdan, やくざ yakuza, 黒手党 kokushutō |
| 中文 | 黑手黨 /黑手党 hēishǒudǎng, 秘密政黨 /秘密政党 mìmì zhèngdǎng, 秘密集團 /秘密集团 mìmì jítuán, 黑幫 /黑帮 hēibāng |
| हिन्दी | माफ़िया māfiyā |
| Português | máfia |
| Français | mafia |
| Deutsch | Mafia |
| Italiano | mafia |
| Ελληνικά | μαφία mafía |
| Română | mafie |
| Русский | ма́фия máfija |
| Tiếng Việt | xã hội đen |
| العربية | مَافِيَا māfiyā |
| עברית | מַפִיָה máfya |
Talk about this word "mafia." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/mafia. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. mafia. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/mafia "mafia." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/mafia.Cite this
@misc{mafia_2026,
title = {mafia},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/mafia},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
