tetrarch

[ te-trahrk, tee- ]

noun

1. any ruler of a fourth part, division, etc.
2. a subordinate ruler.
3. one of four joint rulers or chiefs.
4. the ruler of the fourth part of a country or province in the ancient Roman Empire.

tetrarch

/ -kɪt; tɛˈtrɑːˌkeɪt; ˈtɛtrɑːk /

noun

1. the ruler of one fourth of a country
2. a subordinate ruler, esp of Syria under the Roman Empire
3. the commander of one of the smaller subdivisions of a Macedonian phalanx
4. any of four joint rulers

Derived Forms

• teˈtrarchic, adjective
• tetrarchate, noun
• ˈtetrarchy, noun

Other Words From

• te·trar·chy te·trarch·ate [te, -trahr-keyt, -kit, tee, -], noun
• te·trar·chic [te-, trahr, -kik, ti-], te·trar·chi·cal adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of tetrarch¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, tetrarcha, tetrarke, from Late Latin tetrarcha, variant of Latin tetrarchēs, from Greek tetrárchēs; tetr-, -arch

Word History and Origins

Origin of tetrarch¹

C14: from Greek tetrarkhēs; see tetra- , -arch

Example Sentences

“I felt the towrope go, because once it drops it’s like you hit a brick wall. I couldn’t move, I just hung on, and that’s how I landed in Normandy, spread-eagled on top of a Tetrarch tank.”

From The Guardian

Writing at the end of the first century, the Jewish historian Josephus described how the small fishing village of Bethsaida became a Greco-Roman city, or polis, during the reign of Philip the Tetrarch in 30 A.D.

From National Geographic

The husky-voiced German tenor Gerhard A. Siegel was almost endearing as Herod, the tetrarch of Judea, Herodias’s husband, who is nearly undone by his yearning for his stepdaughter.

From New York Times

Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great by the Samaritan Malthace, and full brother of Archelaus, received as his share of his father’s dominions the provinces of Galilee and Peraea, with the title of tetrarch.

From Project Gutenberg

Antony had made him tetrarch, and now with the assent of Octavian persuaded the Senate to declare him king of Judaea.

From Project Gutenberg