underboss

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noun

An assistant to the boss of a crime family

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Meanings

noununderboss (plural underbosses)

plural underbosses

  1. An assistant to the boss of a crime family

    An alleged "underboss" of the Bonanno family, Carmine Galante, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison […]

    1965 January 6, Peter Kihss, “1,500 in 5 Crime 'Families' Identified”, in New York Times

Origin

From under- + boss, calque from Italian sotto capo.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

underboss. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/underboss

MLA

“underboss.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/underboss. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “underboss,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/underboss.

Source: underboss on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.