chief executive

American  

[cheef ig-zek-yuh-tiv] / ˈtʃif ɪgˈzɛk jə tɪv /

noun

chief executives plural

1. the president of the United States.

   the powers of the chief executive, as granted by the Constitution.

2. the governor of a U.S. state.

   the newly elected chief executive of Rhode Island.

3. the head of a government.

   a conference attended by all the European chief executives.

4. Also called chief executive officer.  the head of an organization, company, etc..

   the chief executive of a media corporation.

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chief executive British  

noun

1. the person with overall responsibility for the efficient running of a company, organization, etc

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• chief executives
  plural

Etymology

Origin of chief executive

An Americanism dating back to 1825–35

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

chief executive

Paul Gigliotti, the chief executive of the California Mortgage Bankers Assn., said his organization is taking these concerns seriously, but provided few specifics on solutions.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026

Alan Morrison, chief executive of Arrow Lab, says the company has a painstaking process to review each kit component to prevent contamination.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

“Markets already move on Truth Social posts,” said Kevin McGurn, Trump Media’s interim chief executive.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 16, 2026

Record earnings have led JP Morgan chief executive Jamie Dimon to describe it as "getting close to as good as it gets", the paper says.

From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026

Or that Louis V. Gerstner, the former IBM chief executive, hired a Boston litigator to help him push through a plan for a large new house on his $11 million waterfront plot?

From "Class Matters" by The New York Times