Phallocrat

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A man who holds power and control in a society dominated by men
2. An individual male leader or figure who exercises authority in a male-centered system
3. A dominant male who governs or commands within a patriarchal or male-dominated structure

Etymology: "Phallocrat" is a compound built from "phallo-", the combining form of the Greek "phallos" (a phallus, or an image of the male sexual organ), and "-crat", from Greek "kratos" meaning power or rule, as in "democrat" or "aristocrat." Put together, the literal sense is rule by the phallus, and the word names a powerful man, often one who keeps women out of positions of authority. The formation is plain and deliberate. "-crat" was a productive suffix for coining names of people who hold or favor a form of power, and "phallo-" supplied the sexual and male-dominant element. The result is a term of criticism rather than a neutral job title, used to describe men who wield influence in ways seen as chauvinistic or exclusionary.