alderman

[ awl-der-muhn ]

noun

, plural al·der·men.

1. a member of a municipal legislative body, especially of a municipal council.
2. (in England) one of the members, chosen by the elected councilors, in a borough or county council.
3. Early English History.
   1. a chief.
   2. (later) the chief magistrate of a county or group of counties.
4. Northern U.S. Slang. a pot belly.

alderman

/ ˌɔːldəˈmænɪk; ˈɔːldəmən /

noun

1. (in England and Wales until 1974) one of the senior members of a local council, elected by other councillors
2. (in the US, Canada, Australia, etc) a member of the governing body of a municipality
3. See ealdorman
   history a variant spelling of ealdorman

alderman

1. A member of a city council. Aldermen usually represent city districts, called wards, and work with the mayor to run the city government. Jockeying among aldermen for political influence is often associated with machine politics .

Gender Note

Is alderman gender-neutral? See -man.

Derived Forms

• ˈaldermanry, noun
• ˈaldermanˌship, noun
• aldermanic, adjective

Other Words From

• alder·man·cy alder·man·ship noun
• al·der·man·ic [awl-der-, man, -ik], adjective
• under·alder·man noun plural underaldermen

Word History and Origins

Origin of alderman¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English (e)aldormann, equivalent to ealdor “chief, patriarch” ( eald old + -or noun suffix) + mann man

Word History and Origins

Origin of alderman¹

Old English aldormann, from ealdor chief (comparative of eald old ) + mann man

Example Sentences

Community activists were able to resist these efforts through the early 1990s, but by the 2000s, political leaders, including the community’s alderman, invited pricey new development into the neighborhood, paving the way for rapid change.

From Eater

Rather, their sole purpose was to convey information regarding the City’s pandemic response to help the aldermen continue to serve effectively in the field as community-based first responders.

From ProPublica

In rejecting the argument, the PAC offered Lightfoot and the city’s lawyers — and maybe certain aldermen as well — a reminder that the City Council is, in fact, Chicago’s legislative branch.

From ProPublica

The discussions sometimes went on for more than an hour, with the mayor and other top city officials taking questions and suggestions from aldermen on matters ranging from police strategies to wellness checks for seniors.

From ProPublica

Even aldermen have noted — and in some cases boasted — that they saw their primary responsibilities as delivering services in their wards, leaving much of the legislative process in the hands of the executive branch.

From ProPublica

Antonio French, a citizen journalist and alderman of the 21st ward in St. Louis, was also detained.

From The Daily Beast

A New York alderman once said Petrosino “knocked out more teeth than a dentist.”

From The Daily Beast

Dirk Johnson on the real winners—including an alderman rooting for a weak mayor.

From The Daily Beast

Nobody, that is, except the lawyer who brought the case, Burt Odelson—and, according to whispers at City Hall, Alderman Burke.

From The Daily Beast

It is a new day in Chicago, as one strutting alderman put it.

From The Daily Beast

This was that Alderman Henry Smith whose tomb and effigy are so conspicuous in the parish church.

From Project Gutenberg

They lolled about the fire and ate, till even slim Henry Burns said he felt like an alderman.

From Project Gutenberg

The town was divided into five wards, each represented by an alderman, the aldermen alone being eligible for the mayoralty.

From Project Gutenberg

"We'll talk of this matter, sir," says Mr. Shum, looking as high and mighty as an alderman.

From Project Gutenberg

He was a very Alderman in embryo, if there are such things as coloured Aldermen.

From Project Gutenberg