English dictionary · noun

aristocracy

the highest class in society; government by a privileged class

Meaning and definitions

1. the highest class in society; government by a privileged class

Connected roots

• -cracy

  power, rule

• -archy

  rule, leader

Explore the word family

These words share a recorded root connection. A shared root is a learning clue; it does not establish every step in a word’s history.

• democracy

  a system of government by the whole population, typically through elected representatives

• democrat

  A supporter of democracy; an advocate of democratic politics (originally (historical) as opposed to the aristocrats in Revolutionary France).

• archbishop

  A senior bishop who is in charge of an archdiocese, and presides over a group of dioceses called a province (in Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Anglicanism, etc.)

• hierarchy

  A body of authoritative officials organized in nested ranks.

• monarchy

  a form of government with a monarch at the head

• bureaucracy

  Government by bureaus or their administrators or officers.

• anarchy

  The state of a society being without authorities or an authoritative governing body.

• patriarch

  The highest form of bishop, in the ancient world having authority over other bishops in the province but now generally as an honorary title; in Roman Catholicism, considered a bishop second only to the Pope in rank.

• patriarchy

  A social system in which the father is head of the household, having authority over women and children, and in which lineage is traced through the male line.

• archdiocese

  A diocese administered by an archbishop.

• aristocrat

  One of the aristocracy, nobility, or people of rank in a community; one of a ruling class; a noble (originally in Revolutionary France).

• archangel

  A powerful angel that leads many other angels, but is still loyal to a deity, and often seen as belonging to a particular archangelical rank or order within a greater hierarchy of angels. (Judeo-Christian examples: Gabriel, Michael, Raphael, Uriel).

• oligarchy

  A government run by and for only a few, often the aristocracy, the wealthy, or their friends and associates.

• bureaucrat

  An official who is part of a bureaucracy.

• archduke

  The son or male-line grandson of an emperor of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

• matriarch

  A female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group.

• autocracy

  A form of government in which unlimited power is held by a single individual.

• theocracy

  Government under the control of a state religion.

• meritocracy

  Rule by merit and talent.

• autocrat

  An absolute ruler with infinite power.

• technocracy

  A system of governance where people who are skilled or proficient govern in their respective areas of expertise.

• technocrat

  An advocate of technocracy.

• matriarchy

  A social system in which the mother is head of household, having authority over men and children, and lineage is traced through the female line.

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