as in gang
a group involved in secret or criminal activities the local Mafia largely finances itself through extortion rackets and drug trafficking

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of Mafia The Alto Knights is titled after a local Mafia social-club hangout, as if suggesting an ode to bygone camaraderie. Armond White, National Review, 21 Mar. 2025 So how about De Niro playing not one but two Mafia kingpins in the same movie? Marco Della Cava, USA TODAY, 20 Mar. 2025 Interest in details related to Kennedy's assassination has been intense over the decades, with countless conspiracy theories spawned about multiple shooters and involvement by the Soviet Union and Mafia. arkansasonline.com, 20 Mar. 2025 The Costello-Genovese civil war culminates in the 1957 Mafia summit known as the Apalachin meeting. Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 20 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for Mafia
Recent Examples of Synonyms for Mafia
Noun
  • Last year the academy, which itself has come under gang attack, only graduated 700 new police officers.
    Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 27 Mar. 2025
  • Another main issue for Rubio will be the situation in Haiti, where a multinational peacekeeping force has been in place for months struggling to prevent gangs from taking over the country.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 27 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • Harry sits at the head of the table between the Dogan and the Lazaro crime syndicates, who are at each other’s throats.
    Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 28 Mar. 2025
  • The drama is tracking the story of spy agency Citadel and its powerful enemy syndicate, Manticore.
    Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 28 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • Lori Vallow Daybell convicted of murder Vallow Daybell was charged in May 2021 with the murders of her children and conspiracy to commit the murder of Tammy Daybell.
    Miguel Torres, USA Today, 7 Apr. 2025
  • Nearly two years after her initial sentencing in Idaho, Lori is now preparing for her trial in Arizona after being charged with one count of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder in the 2019 death of her fourth husband, Charles Vallow.
    Brenton Blanchet, People.com, 6 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • Gabriela Jaquez made sure to marinate in this moment, bouncing gleefully toward half-court while her teammates formed a joyous mob.
    Austin Knoblauch, Los Angeles Times, 31 Mar. 2025
  • In Gilead and real life, when everything is stripped away from a group of people, even their names in the case of the Handmaids, the result is a dangerous mob with nothing to lose.
    Dana Feldman, Forbes.com, 31 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • Members of the Kennedy clan have held positions at nearly every level of government.
    Newsweek Staff, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Apr. 2025
  • This public generational saga goes from ancestral investigation (the Fonda clan migrated from Holland to upstate New York in 1654, then Nebraska, where Henry was born) to cultural exegesis.
    Armond White, National Review, 4 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • The series is also heralded for defying network expectations and knocking down barriers for Black comedy on mainstream television, as well as generating a host of beloved characters.
    Toria Sheffield, People.com, 30 Mar. 2025
  • Visa isn’t the only big credit card network treating fraud as not only a threat, but a business opportunity.
    Megan Poinski, Forbes.com, 30 Mar. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Mafia.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/Mafia. Accessed 10 Apr. 2025.

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