Mafia
WordNet
noun
(1) Any tightly knit group of trusted associates
(2) A secret terrorist group in Sicily; originally opposed tyranny but evolved into a criminal organization in the middle of the 19th century
(3) A crime syndicate in the United States; organized in families; believed to have important relations to the Sicilian Mafia
WiktionaryText
Etymology
, originally meaning "bragging"; see the Wikipedia article for greater discussion of the origin of the word
Proper noun
- An international criminal organization of Sicilian origin operating in Italy and the United States.
- Any organized crime syndicate operating internationally in high-level organized crime; .
- Somehow he managed to piss off the Russian Mafia.