Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
oligarchy
Sponsored Links Oligarchy
Bargain Prices. Smart Deals. Save on Oligarchy.
BizRate.com
6 dictionary results for: Oligarchy
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
ol·i·gar·chy       [ol-i-gahr-kee] Pronunciation Key
–noun, plural -chies.
1.a form of government in which all power is vested in a few persons or in a dominant class or clique; government by the few.
2.a state or organization so ruled.
3.the persons or class so ruling.
[Origin: 1570–80; < ML oligarchia < Gk oligarchía. See olig-, -archy]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Sponsored Links Oligarchy
Bargain Prices. Smart Deals. Save on Oligarchy.
BizRate.com
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
ol·i·gar·chy       (ŏl'ĭ-gär'kē, ō'lĭ-)  Pronunciation Key 
n.   pl. ol·i·gar·chies
    1. Government by a few, especially by a small faction of persons or families.
    2. Those making up such a government.
  2. A state governed by a few persons.

ol'i·gar'chic, ol'i·gar'chi·cal adj.
(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
oligarchy 
1577, from M.Fr. oligarchie (14c.), from Gk. oligarkhia "government by the few," from oligoi "few, small, little" (of unknown origin) + arkhein "to rule."

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
oligarchy

noun
a political system governed by a few people; "one of his cardinal convictions was that Britain was not run as a democracy but as an oligarchy"; "the big cities were notoriously in the hands of the oligarchy of local businessmen" 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
American Heritage New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition - Cite This Source - Share This
oligarchy [(ol-uh-gahr-kee, oh-luh-gahr-kee)]

A system of government in which power is held by a small group.


The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Oligarchy

Ol"i*gar"chy\, n.; pl. Oligarchies. [Gr. ?; ? few, little + ? to rule, govern: cf.F. oligarchie.] A form of government in which the supreme power is placed in the hands of a few persons; also, those who form the ruling few.

All oligarchies, wherein a few men domineer, do what they list. --Burton.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Share This:Share This: digg.comShare This: ma.gnolia.comShare This: www.stumbleupon.comShare This: del.icio.usShare This: FacebookShare This: favorites.live.comShare This: www.technorati.comShare This: furl.netShare This: myweb2.search.yahoo.comShare This: www.google.com
Sponsored Links Oligarchy
Bargain Prices. Smart Deals. Save on Oligarchy.
BizRate.com