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Glite Dictionary
Sicilian Mafia

Sicilian Mafia

1 6.7
An organized criminal group from Sicily that uses violence to control illegal businesses
  • noun
  • /sɪˈsɪliən ˈmɑːfiə/
  • NSFW
translation icon : mafia siciliana
  • The Sicilian Mafia is well-known for its involvement in various illegal activities across Italy.

Examples

  • Many people fear the influence of the Sicilian Mafia over legitimate businesses in Sicily.

  • For centuries, one of the tightest organizations in the world, with a code of honor to rival that of the Sicilian Mafia, has been turned inside out in the past six months.

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  • Law enforcement agencies are constantly trying to dismantle the operations of the Sicilian Mafia.

Synonyms

mob
vsSicilian Mafia
180 5.3

A group of criminals who run illegal businesses together

is a more formal secretive society that began in Sicily and holds wide influence
Mafia
vsSicilian Mafia
130 4.4

A secret group that commits crimes and controls illegal businesses

is the criminal society that began on the Italian island of Sicily
syndicate
vsSicilian Mafia
34 7.3

A group of people who run illegal businesses together

is narrower, meaning the society from Sicily with secret influence
crime syndicate
vsSicilian Mafia
8 4.5

An organized group of criminals who work together to do illegal things

is the specific society from Sicily noted for secrecy and wide influence
Maffia
vsSicilian Mafia
  • Archaic
9.1

A secret criminal group from Sicily that controls illegal activities

is the organized society known for secretive operations and broad illegal influence

Surface Forms

Sicilian Mafia singular
Sicilian Mafias plural

Morphology

Sicilian + Maffia

This is a straightforward adjectival composition: 'Sicilian' (of or from Sicily) + 'Mafia' (a criminal organization). A B1 learner who knows both constituents can readily infer it refers to the Mafia originating in Sicily (an organized criminal society); the specific connotations of secrecy and influence are attributes of 'Mafia' rather than opaque to the compound. The adjective+noun pattern is cross-linguistically common, so the meaning is transparently derivable from the parts.

Etymology

Sicilian Mafia comes from secret groups in Sicily that began as local people who offered 'protection' but used threats and secret rules to control towns. That's why the name now means 'an organized criminal society'.