chairman

American  

[chair-muhn] / ˈtʃɛər mən /

noun

plural

chairmen

1. the presiding officer of a meeting, committee, board, etc.

2. the administrative head of a department in a high school, college, or university.

3. someone employed to carry or wheel a person in a chair.

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verb (used with object)

chairmaned, chairmanned, chairmaning, chairmanning

1. to act as or be chairman of (a meeting, committee, etc.).

chairman British  

/ ˈtʃɛəmən /

noun

1. Also called: chairperson.   chairwoman.  a person who presides over a company's board of directors, a committee, a debate, an administrative department, etc

2. history someone who carries a sedan chair

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Usage

Chairman can seem inappropriate when applied to a woman, while chairwoman can be offensive. Chair and chairperson can be applied to either a man or a woman; chair is generally preferred to chairperson

Gender

Is it chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson? See chairperson.

Other Word Forms

• chairmanship noun

Etymology

Origin of chairman

First recorded in 1645–55; chair + -man

Example Sentences

At the time of the deal, Donna Langley, chairman of Universal Filmed Entertainment Group, said the company was “grateful” the pair had “chosen to go on their journey” with Universal.

From Los Angeles Times

Consider this a plea to Kevin Warsh, nominated to succeed Mr. Powell as Fed chairman: Please, please, put the dots out of our misery.

From The Wall Street Journal

At the time, the board chairman said Rousseau had started intensive French training and that his language skills would be part of his annual evaluation.

From The Wall Street Journal

During his appearance before the jury in February, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta's chairman and chief executive, relied on his company's longstanding policy of not allowing users under the age of 13 on any of its platforms.

From BBC

A spokeswoman for Meta, led by chairman and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg, said the company disagrees with the verdict and intends to appeal.

From BBC

Related Words

• administrator
• chairperson
• chairwoman
• director
• leader
• spokesman