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don

don

132 9.6
A leader of a crime family, especially in the Mafia
  • noun
  • /dɑn/
: jefe de la mafia
  • "If you represent a Mafia don, you can say, 'I take the Fifth.'"
  • Mafia don
  • became a don

He says a certain lunatic is convinced that all Dons want to murder him.

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Examples

Synonyms

father
vsdon
1 8.3

A man who leads a crime family

is specifically tied to the Mafia rather than to organized crime generally

Compounds

Don Quixote
  • Literature
21 8.0

A person with very unrealistic ideas who tries to change the world

Don Juan
  • NSFW
8 5.8

A man who has romantic or sexual relationships with many women

Teflon Don
  • Literature
1 9.9

A person, often a leader, who avoids blame or punishment despite bad actions

A city and major port on the Don River in southwestern Russia

1 4.5

A large river in the south of Russia that flows into the Sea of Azov

How Senior

don
132 9.6
capo
10 9.7
mafioso
6 8.7
member
∞ 1.4
associate
403 3.2

Surface Forms

don singular
dons plural

Etymology

The word don for a crime boss comes from the Italian and Spanish title don, itself from Latin dominus meaning 'lord' or 'master', so a don is the 'boss' or head of a family.