mafia

Definition of Mafia in English :

Noun

a crime syndicate in the United States; organized in families; believed to have important relations to the Sicilian Mafia

2. maffia, mafia, sicilian mafia

a secret terrorist group in Sicily; originally opposed tyranny but evolved into a criminal organization in the middle of the 19th century

3. maffia, mafia

any tightly knit group of trusted associates

maffia

WordNet Lexical Database for English. Princeton University. 2010.

Mafia

see synonyms of mafia

noun

1. the Mafia

2.

any group considered to resemble the Mafia

See also Black Hand, Camorra, Cosa Nostra

Mafia

see synonyms of mafia

noun

1.

in Sicily,

a. [m-]

an attitude of popular hostility to law and government

b.

a secret society characterized by this attitude

2.

a.

in the U.S. and elsewhere, a secret society, of Italian origin, engaged in such illegal activities as gambling, prostitution, and illicit trade in narcotics

b. [m-]

any group engaged in such activities

the Russian mafia

3. [m-]

any exclusive or dominating group

Mafia

see synonyms of mafia

n.

1.

a. A secret criminal organization operating mainly in Sicily since the early 1800s and known for its intimidation of and retribution against law enforcement officials and witnesses.

b. A secret criminal organization operating mainly in the United States and Italy and engaged in illegal activities such as gambling, drug-dealing, protection, and prostitution.

2. Any of various similar criminal organizations, especially when dominated by members of the same nationality.

3. often mafia Informal A tightly knit group of trusted associates, as of a political leader: "[He] is one of the personal mafia that [the chancellor] brought with him to Bonn" (Christian Science Monitor).

Mafia

Noun

Mafia

Mafia

Mafia

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