' is a form of government Aristotle developed in his search for a government that could be most easily incorporated and used by the largest amount of people groups, or states. Polity is a political system that combines ideals from an oligarchy, "government by the few" (Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary), with ideals from a democracy, "government by the people, especially: rule of the majority" (Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary). (Definition of Polity: From Socrates to Sartre: The Philosophical Quest by T.Z. Lavine, pg. 76) Today polity is used as a general term referring to a political organization or a specific form of a political organization (Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary). It can be used to describe a loosely organized society such as a tribe or community, but can mean any political group including a government or empire, corporation or academy. Polity is used in the phrase ecclesiastical polity as a synonym for church government.