This word refers to the great ones—those holding power, wealth, and high social status. It describes the elite, the magnates, the influential figures who shape society. Mark 6:21 uses it in Herod's court: he gave a banquet 'for his nobles and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee'—the inner circle of power. Revelation 6:15 lists those hiding from divine wrath: 'kings of the earth, the great ones, the generals, the rich and the powerful'—every stratum of human authority and might. Revelation 18:23 laments fallen Babylon because 'your merchants were the great ones of the earth,' emphasizing economic power corrupted by luxury and exploitation.