Patriarch definition
An example of a patriarch is Abraham, Issac, Jacob or one of Jacob's twelve sons in the Bible.
The patriarch of the herd.
Other Word Forms
Noun
Origin of patriarch
- Middle English patriarche from Old French from Late Latin patriarcha from Greek patriarkhēs patriā lineage (from patēr patr- father pəter- in Indo-European roots) -arkhēs -arch
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
- Old English patriarcha, from Late Latin patriarcha; later reinforced by Old French patriarche, from Byzantine Greek πατριάρχης (“the founder of the tribe/family”), from Ancient Greek πατριά (patria, “generation, ancestry, descent, tribe, family”) + -αρχης (-arkhēs, “-arch”).
From Wiktionary