king

¹

[ king ]

noun

1. a male sovereign or monarch; a man who holds by life tenure, and usually by hereditary right, the chief authority over a country and people.
2. (initial capital letter) God or Christ.
3. a person or thing preeminent in its class:

   a king of actors.

4. a playing card bearing a picture of a king.
5. Chess. the chief piece of each color, whose checkmating is the object of the game; moved one square at a time in any direction.
6. Checkers. a piece that has been moved entirely across the board and has been crowned, thus allowing it to be moved in any direction.
7. Entomology. a fertile male termite.
8. a word formerly used in communications to represent the letter K.

verb (used with object)

1. to make a king of; cause to be or become a king; crown.
2. Informal. to design or make (a product) king-size:

   The tobacco company is going to king its cigarettes.

verb (used without object)

1. to reign as king.

adjective

1. Informal. king-size.

verb phrase

1. to play the king; behave in an imperious or pretentious manner:

   He kinged it over all the other kids on the block.

King

²

[ king ]

noun

1. Bil·lie Jean (Mof·fitt) [bil, -ee , jeen, , mof, -it], born 1943, U.S. tennis player.
2. Clarence, 1842–1901, U.S. geologist and cartographer.
3. Co·ret·ta Scott [kaw-, ret, -, uh, , skot], 1927–2006, U.S. civil rights leader (widow of Martin Luther King, Jr.)
4. Ernest Joseph, 1878–1956, U.S. naval officer.
5. Martin Luther, Jr., MLK, 1929–68, U.S. Baptist minister: civil rights leader; Nobel Peace Prize 1964.
6. Maxine Micki, born 1944, U.S. springboard and platform diver.
7. Richard, 1825–85, U.S. rancher and steamboat operator.
8. Riley B. B.B., 1925–2015, U.S. blues singer and guitarist.
9. Rufus, 1755–1827, U.S. political leader and statesman.
10. Stephen, born 1947, U.S. novelist and short-story writer.
11. William Lyon Mackenzie, 1874–1950, Canadian statesman: prime minister 1921–26, 1926–30, 1935–48.
12. William Rufus De·Vane [d, uh, -, veyn], 1786–1853, vice president of the U.S. 1853.

king

¹

/ kɪŋ /

noun

1. a male sovereign prince who is the official ruler of an independent state; monarch royalregalmonarchical
2. 1. a ruler or chief

      king of the fairies

   2. ( in combination )

      the pirate king

3. 1. a person, animal, or thing considered as the best or most important of its kind
   2. ( as modifier )

      a king bull

4. any of four playing cards in a pack, one for each suit, bearing the picture of a king
5. See check, checkmate
   the most important chess piece, although theoretically the weakest, being able to move only one square at a time in any direction See also check checkmate
6. draughts a piece that has moved entirely across the board and has been crowned, after which it may move backwards as well as forwards
7. king of kings
   king of kings
   1. God
   2. a title of any of various oriental monarchs

verb

1. to make (someone) a king
2. king it
   king it to act in a superior fashion

King

²

/ kɪŋ /

noun

1. KingB.B.1925MUSMUSIC: blues singerMUSIC: guitarist B.B., real name Riley B. King. born 1925, US blues singer and guitarist
2. KingBillie Jean1943FUSSPORT AND GAMES: tennis player Billie Jean (née Moffitt ). born 1943, US tennis player: winner of twelve Grand Slam singles titles, including Wimbledon (1966–68, 1972–73, and 1975) and the US Open (1967, 1971–72, and 1974)
3. KingMartin Luther19291968MUSRELIGION: clergymanPOLITICS: civil-rights leader Martin Luther. 1929–68, US Baptist minister and civil-rights leader. He advocated nonviolence in his campaigns against the segregation of Black people in the South: assassinated: Nobel Peace Prize 1964
4. KingStephen (Edwin)1947MUSWRITING: writer Stephen ( Edwin ). born 1947, US writer esp of horror novels; his books, many of which have been filmed, include Carrie (1974), The Shining (1977), Misery (1988), and Everything's Eventual (2002)
5. KingWilliam Lyon Mackenzie18741950MCanadianPOLITICS: statesmanPOLITICS: prime minister William Lyon Mackenzie. 1874–1950, Canadian Liberal statesman; prime minister (1921–26; 1926–30; 1935–48)

Derived Forms

• ˈkingˌlike, adjective
• ˈkingˌhood, noun
• ˈkingless, adjective

Other Words From

• kingless adjective
• kingless·ness noun
• kinglike adjective
• outking verb (used with object)
• subking noun
• under·king noun
• un·kinged adjective
• un·kinglike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of king¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English cyng, cyni(n)g; cognate with German König, Dutch koning, Old Norse konungr, Swedish konung, Danish konge; equivalent to kin + -ing ³

Word History and Origins

Origin of king¹

Old English cyning; related to Old High German kunig king, Danish konge

Idioms and Phrases

In addition to the idiom beginning with king , also see live like a king .

Example Sentences

I wish I was a young Carole King, working in the Brill Building.

From The Daily Beast

As played by Omundson, King Richard is effeminate, sincere, and ten times funnier than everyone else.

From The Daily Beast

But his words felt forced and were belied his 2004 vote to oppose marking Martin Luther King Jr.

From The Daily Beast

The last film about Martin Luther King was made for television in 1977.

From The Daily Beast

King agreed to this arrangement but did not reveal it to his followers.

From The Daily Beast

The big room at King's Warren Parsonage was already fairly well filled.

From Project Gutenberg

A fancy came into my head that I would entertain the king and queen with an English tune upon this instrument.

From Project Gutenberg

The King of Delhi had a hunting-lodge somewhere in the locality, but he had never seen the place.

From Project Gutenberg

The archbishop of Manila sends to the king (July 30, 1621) an account of ecclesiastical and some other affairs in his diocese.

From Project Gutenberg

The sad end of the mission to King M'Bongo has been narrated in the body of this work.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• emperor
• monarch
• sultan