a person in charge of a particular department, group of workers, etc., as in a factory or the like.
the member of a jury selected to preside over and speak for all the jurors on the panel.
Gender-neutral form: supervisor. a person, often experienced, who supervises other workmen
Female equivalent: forewoman. law the principal juror, who presides at the deliberations of a jury
See -man.
1175–1225; Middle English forman chief servant, steward. See fore-, man
On many job sites, the boss or supervisor is called the foreman. If you get a job on a construction crew, the foreman is the person in charge. While the supervisor in an office, hospital, or school has a totally different title, in manual labor it's common to use the word foreman. This is true in factories and plants, as well as on ranches and railroads. Even on a jury there's a foreman, the member who announces the group's verdict. A woman in one of these roles might be called foreman, forewoman, or foreperson. A simpler, gender-neutral compromise is to use "supervisor" instead.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He said the hunger strike was now the family's "biggest concern", adding that Craig Foreman was on day 30 of the protest while Lindsay Foreman was on day 21.
From BBC • Jun. 7, 2026
“Memes are great for publicity,” said Foreman, who’s deciding between Becerra and Porter, based on their policy experience.
From Los Angeles Times • May 17, 2026
Jack Foreman, a third‑year student midwife from King's Lynn in Norfolk, said the situation was disheartening.
From BBC • Apr. 23, 2026
Outside of his live-band career, Foreman was a prolific DJ and a deeply knowledgeable music journalist.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2026
When they had that fight down there with Muhammad Ali and George Foreman we had tons of tourists from that.
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
