chairman
Americannoun
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the presiding officer of a meeting, committee, board, etc.
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the administrative head of a department in a high school, college, or university.
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someone employed to carry or wheel a person in a chair.
verb (used with object)
noun
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Also called: chairperson. chairwoman. a person who presides over a company's board of directors, a committee, a debate, an administrative department, etc
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history someone who carries a sedan chair
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
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of chairman
Explanation
A chairman is the leader of a business meeting or group. The chairman often opens a meeting by addressing the group and explaining what the agenda will be. Charities, clubs, and the boards of companies have a chairman who acts as president or leader. The noun chairman can refer to this person, whether male or female, though sometimes a woman is called a chairwoman. These days, it's more common still to simply call her (or him) a chair. The word chairman comes from a sense of "occupying a chair of authority," while "presiding member of a corporate body" first emerged in the 18th century.
Vocabulary lists containing chairman
The Legislative Branch, Sections 4–6
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Stuart Little
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Chairman Andrew Cavenagh publicly backed Rohl at the end of the season, but the German now returns to the Red Bull stable, having begun his coaching career at Leipzig under Ralph Hasenhuttl.
From BBC • Jun. 17, 2026
“He has deep technical knowledge of our industry as well as extensive commercial experience and has proved himself in several key leadership positions,” Ericsson Chairman Jan Carlson said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 16, 2026
Chairman Chung Yong-jin will also take the training, the company announced.
From BBC • Jun. 15, 2026
This week’s economic highlight is the Federal Reserve’s policymaking meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday, and new Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh’s first press conference on Wednesday.
From Barron's • Jun. 14, 2026
The Soviet Union’s head of state and a close colleague of Stalin’s, Chairman Mikhail Kalinin, gave a speech in July 1945 addressed to the “Glorious Daughters of the Soviet People.”
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
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.
