Definition of Maffia

1. Noun. A crime syndicate in the United States; organized in families; believed to have important relations to the Sicilian Mafia.

Exact synonyms: Cosa Nostra, Mafia
Examples of category: Omerta
Generic synonyms: Crime Syndicate, Family, Mob, Syndicate
Member holonyms: Mafioso

2. Noun. A secret terrorist group in Sicily; originally opposed tyranny but evolved into a criminal organization in the middle of the 19th century.
Exact synonyms: Mafia, Sicilian Mafia
Category relationships: Act Of Terrorism, Terrorism, Terrorist Act
Generic synonyms: Gangdom, Gangland, Organized Crime
Member holonyms: Mafioso

3. Noun. Any tightly knit group of trusted associates.
Exact synonyms: Mafia
Language type: Colloquialism
Generic synonyms: Camp, Clique, Coterie, Ingroup, Inner Circle, Pack

Definition of Maffia

1. n. A secret society which organized in Sicily as a political organization, but is now widespread among Italians, and is used to further or protect private interests, reputedly by illegal methods.

Definition of Maffia

1. Proper noun. A less common spelling of '''Mafia'''. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Maffia

1. mafia [n -S] - See also: mafia

Lexicographical Neighbors of Maffia

maenors
maerl
maerls
maes
maestoso
maestosos
maestri
maestricht monitor
maestro
maestro di cappella
maestrolike
maestros
maezumo
mafeesh
mafenide
maffia
maffias
maffick
mafficked
mafficker
maffickers
mafficking
mafficks
maffle
maffled
maffler
mafflers
mafflin
maffling
mafflings

Literary usage of Maffia

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. Chambers's Encyclopaedia: A Dictionary of Universal Knowledge (1901)
"In an organised form, however, the Maffia survives only in isolated localities; ... Therefore a distinction is drawn between the high and the low Maffia, ..."

2. Chamber's Encyclopaedia: A Dictionary of Universal Knowledge (1890)
"See Alongi, La Maffia (Turin, 1887). Mafra, a town of Portugal, 20 miles N\V. of Lisbon. Pop. 3020. The palace here, built by .lohn V. in 1717-31 as a rival ..."

3. Abnormal Man: Being Essays on Education and Crime and Related Subjects, with by Arthur MacDonald (1893)
"It is divided into two clans, the Maffia of the city and the Maffia of the country. ... The prefect of Palermo deanes the Maffia as a latent and pernicious ..."

4. Penal Philosophy by Gabriel de Tarde, Rapelje Howell (1912)
"(Ill) Continuation, the Sicilian Maffia. (IV) Urban brigandage. Criminality in Barcelona. '«• § 46. Preliminary Remarks. AN estimate of the contemporary ..."

5. American Life by Paul de Rousiers (1891)
"This was enough for the grand council of the Maffia to condemn him to death, ... The jurymen, fearing the terrible vengeance of the Maffia after this ..."

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