Word
hierarchy
Phoneticshi·er·ar·chy
US/ˈhaɪˌɹɑɹki/
UK/hˈaɪəɹɑːki/
Definitions
01social or professional ranking
n. a system in an organization where people are ranked one above the other according to their power or status.
n. a social or organizational structure in which individuals or groups are ranked according to authority, status, or seniority.
“In the company hierarchy, the managers report directly to the vice president.”
“The rigid corporate hierarchy made it difficult for junior employees to propose innovative ideas to the executive board.”
Academic
Usage
Often used with the definite article 'the' when referring to a specific organization's structure.
02classification of things
n. a way of organizing ideas or objects into levels, from the most important to the least important.
n. a series of ordered groupings within a system, such as biological classifications or data structures.
“The software organizes your files in a hierarchy of folders and subfolders.”
“Maslow's hierarchy of needs suggests that basic physical requirements must be met before a person can pursue higher psychological goals.”
Academic
Usage
Commonly appears in the phrase 'hierarchy of' followed by a plural noun.
Synonyms
Real-World Examples
“Her father drew on the logic of age and hierarchy – “Because I’m your father and I said so” – and she demanded to be treated as a person first and a daughter second.” “Rigid hierarchies have given way to looser networks of transporters and financial specialists operating through front companies.” “The results suggest that Shimao's social hierarchy was organized through patrilineal descent, meaning ancestry and status were traced through fathers.” “There was a brief moment last autumn when Maresca’s former side looked most capable of challenging Arsenal before his squabbles with the hierarchy brought an end to the Italian’s tenure.” Etymology
From Middle English ierarchie, jerarchie, from Old French ierarchie, jerarchie, from Late Latin ierarchia, from Latin hierarchia, from Ancient Greek ἱεραρχία (hierarkhía, “rule of a high priest”), from ἱεράρχης (hierárkhēs, “high priest”), from ἱερός (hierós, “holy”) + ἄρχω (árkhō, “I rule”), equivalent to hiero- + -archy. The H was re-added c. 1500 due to influence from Classical Latin.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Collocations
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/hierarchy