Patriarchal
[peɪtrɪ'ɑːk(ə)l] or [,petrɪ'ɑrkl]
Definition
(adj.) characteristic of a form of social organization in which the male is the family head and title is traced through the male line .
(adj.) relating to or characteristic of a man who is older or higher in rank .
Typist: Vern--From WordNet
Definition
(a.) Of or pertaining to a patriarch or to patriarchs; possessed by, or subject to, patriarchs; as, patriarchal authority or jurisdiction; a patriarchal see; a patriarchal church.
(a.) Characteristic of a patriarch; venerable.
(a.) Having an organization of society and government in which the head of the family exercises authority over all its generations.
Inputed by Byron
Examples
- The joint family system, he said, has descended to us from time immemorial, the Aryan patriarchal system of old still holding sway in India. H. G. Wells. The Outline of History_Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind.
- Except for quite personal possessions, there was still an air of patriarchal communism about the tribe. H. G. Wells. The Outline of History_Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind.
- The Israelites held them sacred in the old patriarchal times, and these other Arabs, their lineal descendants, do so likewise. Mark Twain. The Innocents Abroad.
- At five minutes before eight her hand was on the Patriarchal knocker, which was quite as high as she could reach. Charles Dickens. Little Dorrit.
- They were the homes of small patriarchal groups. H. G. Wells. The Outline of History_Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind.
- The Patriarchs were not dressed in bottle-green broadcloth, and yet his clothes looked patriarchal. Charles Dickens. Little Dorrit.
- That wonder was in its turn swallowed up on the greater wonder with which he saw them stop at the Patriarchal door. Charles Dickens. Little Dorrit.
- They are presented as patriarchal Bedouin chiefs, living the life of nomadic shepherds in the country between Babylonia and Egypt. H. G. Wells. The Outline of History_Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind.
- The Semite also was more polygamous than the Aryan, his women less self-assertive,[135] and the tendency of his government more patriarchal. H. G. Wells. The Outline of History_Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind.
- The Caliph had become a luxurious Emperor or King of Kings; the administration had changed from a patriarchal system to a bureaucracy. H. G. Wells. The Outline of History_Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind.
- The Patriarchal state, always a state of calmness and composure, was so particularly serene that evening as to be provoking. Charles Dickens. Little Dorrit.
- Early in the morning, Little Dorrit, leaving Maggy in high domestic trust, set off for the Patriarchal tent. Charles Dickens. Little Dorrit.
- Pseudo-counts, patriarchal knights, islands of fantasy, hintings of dangers. Fergus Hume. The Island of Fantasy.
- The patriarchal community of which Justinian is king! Fergus Hume. The Island of Fantasy.
- The feminists too have their atavisms: not a few who object to the patriarchal family seem inclined to cure it by going back still more--to the matriarchal. Walter Lippmann. A Preface to Politics.
Inputed by Byron