chief

American  

[cheef] / tʃif /

noun

1. the head or leader of an organized body of people; the person highest in authority.

   the chief of police.

2. the head or ruler of a tribe or clan.

   an Indian chief.

3. U.S. Army.  Chief, a title of some advisers to the Chief of Staff, who do not, in most instances, command the troop units of their arms or services.

   Chief of Engineers;

   Chief Signal Officer.

4. Informal: Sometimes Offensive.  boss or leader.

   We'll have to talk to the chief about this.

5. Heraldry.

   1. the upper area of an escutcheon.

   2. an ordinary occupying this area.

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adjective

1. highest in rank or authority.

   the chief priest;

   the chief administrator.

   Antonyms:

   subordinate

2. most important; principal.

   his chief merit;

   the chief difficulty.

   Synonyms:

   paramount , prime , leading , foremost , cardinal

adverb

1. Archaic.  chiefly; principally.

idioms

1. in chief,

   1. in the chief position; highest in rank (used in combination).

      editor in chief; commander in chief.

   2. Heraldry.  in the upper part of an escutcheon.

chief British  

/ tʃiːf /

noun

1. the head, leader, or most important individual in a group or body of people

2. another word for chieftain

3. heraldry the upper third of a shield

4. primarily; especially

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adjective

1. (prenominal)

   1. most important; principal

   2. highest in rank or authority

adverb

1. archaic  principally

Sensitive Note

See powwow.

Related Words

See capital ¹.

Other Word Forms

• chiefless adjective
• chiefship noun
• subchief noun
• underchief noun

Etymology

Origin of chief

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Anglo-French chief, chef, Old French chef, from unattested Vulgar Latin capum, re-formation of Latin caput head

Example Sentences

Jared Bush, co-writer and co-director of “Zootopia 2” and chief creative officer of Walt Disney’s animation studio, attributed the film’s success to the way it speaks to everyone around the world.

From MarketWatch

Pascal Soriot, chief executive of AstraZeneca, said that drug prices in the U.S. are out of proportion compared with other countries and that the company is increasing its workforce and investment in America.

From The Wall Street Journal

The chief constable admitted that had ended up in the report "due to a social media post".

From BBC

"The situation at the border with Belarus is worsening, with the growing incursions of smuggling balloons into Lithuania's airspace," the European Commission chief wrote on X following talks with Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda.

From Barron's

The Office for Budget Responsibility had planned to release its assessment of announcements on tax and spending after treasury chief Rachel Reeves had presented them to lawmakers Wednesday, in line with convention.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• captain
• commander
• director
• head
• leader
• manager
• ruler
• superintendent
• supervisor