Meanings
plural materfamiliases · plural matresfamilias
- The female head of a household.
That my old-country materfamilias is actually Chinese--Mandarin Chinese, yet--is a negligible discrepancy.
1990 June 1, Mary Shen Barnidge, “Who Killed the Dragon Lady”, in Chicago Reader2 more examples
The materfamilias and her daughters do a good deal of the housework, and even open the front door on occasion.
1903, Luigi Villari, Italian Life in Town and Country, pages 110–111Anyway, attendees for the hen weekend included fellow astronaut Katy Perry, the two most prestigious Kardashians – Kim and materfamilias Kris Jenner – as well as Eva Longoria, who travelled onward to Cannes to present Lauren with last night’s humanitarian award.
2025 May 20, Marina Hyde, “Was this a hen do or a humanitarian mission to liberate Paris? Either way, give Lauren Sánchez an award”, in The Guardian, →ISSNSynonyms: matriarch
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe female head of a household.
More synonyms by meaning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latinmāter familiās“mother of the household”
- Englishmaterfamilias
From Latin māter familiās (“mother of the household”).
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
materfamilias. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/materfamilias
“materfamilias.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/materfamilias. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “materfamilias,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/materfamilias.
Source: materfamilias on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.