Learn Greek › B2 › μαφία
μαφία
mafia /maˈfi.a/
nounB2#2454 most common
Also: organized crime syndicate, criminal underworld, clique with hidden power (informal, metaphorical)
Example sentences
Η μαφία είναι επικίνδυνη.
The mafia is dangerous.
Ο πατέρας του δουλεύει για τη μαφία.
His father works for the mafia.
Η αστυνομία συνέλαβε μέλη της μαφίας χθες.
Police arrested mafia members yesterday.
Η ταινία περιγράφει τη ζωή μέσα στη μαφία της Σικελίας.
The film describes life inside the Sicilian mafia.
Οι δεσμοί της μαφίας με πολιτικούς παράγοντες αποκαλύφθηκαν στην έρευνα.
The mafia's ties to political figures were exposed in the investigation.
Η διείσδυση της μαφίας στην τοπική οικονομία υπονόμευσε θεσμούς για δεκαετίες.
The mafia's penetration of the local economy undermined institutions for decades.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | η μαφία | οι μαφίες |
| Genitive | της μαφίας | των μαφιών |
| Accusative | τη μαφία | τις μαφίες |
| Vocative | μαφία | μαφίες |
Word family
μαφιόζοςmobster, mafioso
μαφιόζαfemale mobster
μαφιόζικοςmafia-style, of the mafia
οργανωμένο έγκλημαorganized crime
Etymology
Greek borrowed μαφία directly from Italian mafia in the twentieth century, as the word spread internationally alongside news coverage of Sicilian organized crime. The Italian word itself entered common use in the 1800s in Sicily, and its ultimate origin is disputed among linguists, with no settled explanation. Because it is a modern loanword rather than an inherited term, it has no Proto-Indo-European root.
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