matriarchy
/ˈmeɪ.tɹiˌɑː.ki/
"matriarchy" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“matriarchy” is an uncommon English word, ranked #89,608 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #89,608
- frequency rank, English
- 10
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - 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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | matriarchy |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈmeɪ.tɹiˌɑː.ki/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Frequency rank | #89,608 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “matriarchy” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for matriarchy is 10 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈmeɪ.tɹiˌɑː.ki/. Corpus data places it at rank #89,608 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for matriarchy, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.
Etymologically, the entry records: Coined after patriarchy, from Latin māter (“mother”) and Ancient Greek ἄρχω (árkhō, “I rule”). By surface analysis, matri- + -archy. The correct English form is matriarchy, spelled M-A-T-R-I-A-R-C-H-Y.
Definition
- 1A social system in which the mother is head of household, having authority over men and children, and lineage is traced through the female line.
- 2A system of government by females (particularly as a kind of polity).
- 3The dominance of women in social or cultural systems.
Etymology
Coined after patriarchy, from Latin māter (“mother”) and Ancient Greek ἄρχω (árkhō, “I rule”). By surface analysis, matri- + -archy.
Synonyms
Antonyms
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “matriarchy”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is M-A-T-R-I-A-R-C-H-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈmeɪ.tɹiˌɑː.ki/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.