chief

American  

[cheef] / tʃif /

noun

1. the head or leader of an organized body of people; the person highest in authority.

   the chief of police.

2. the head or ruler of a tribe or clan.

   an Indian chief.

3. U.S. Army. Chief, a title of some advisers to the Chief of Staff, who do not, in most instances, command the troop units of their arms or services.

   Chief of Engineers;

   Chief Signal Officer.

4. Informal: Sometimes Offensive. boss or leader.

   We'll have to talk to the chief about this.

5. Heraldry.

   1. the upper area of an escutcheon.

   2. an ordinary occupying this area.

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adjective

1. highest in rank or authority.

   the chief priest;

   the chief administrator.

   Antonyms:

   subordinate

2. most important; principal.

   his chief merit;

   the chief difficulty.

   Synonyms:

   paramount, prime, leading, foremost, cardinal

adverb

1. Archaic. chiefly; principally.

idioms

1. in chief,

   1. in the chief position; highest in rank (used in combination).

      editor in chief; commander in chief.

   2. Heraldry. in the upper part of an escutcheon.

chief British  

/ tʃiːf /

noun

1. the head, leader, or most important individual in a group or body of people

2. another word for chieftain

3. heraldry the upper third of a shield

4. primarily; especially

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adjective

1. (prenominal)

   1. most important; principal

   2. highest in rank or authority

adverb

1. archaic principally

Sensitive Note

See powwow.

Related Words

See capital ¹.

Other Word Forms

• chiefless adjective
• chiefship noun
• subchief noun
• underchief noun

Etymology

Origin of chief

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Anglo-French chief, chef, Old French chef, from unattested Vulgar Latin capum, re-formation of Latin caput head

Explanation

A chief is a leader, often of a tribe or clan. Sometimes we call the president our "commander in chief." A chief is the head honcho, the big cheese, the top dog. Tribes are lead by chiefs, but so are firefighters (fire chief), policeman (police chief), and companies (Chief Executive Officer or CEO). When used as an adjective, chief describes the most important element or main ingredient of something. You couldn't make mac and cheese without the chief ingredients: macaroni and cheese.

Example Sentences

“The consumer is still a little bit muted,” Procter & Gamble’s chief financial officer said last week.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 27, 2026

Analysts described the deal at the time as a "natural fit" for Meta, with founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg spurring the firm's AI development.

From BBC • Apr. 27, 2026

“The AI story is entering a more demanding phase,” says Charu Chanana, chief investment strategist at Saxo Bank.

From Barron's • Apr. 27, 2026

Cassie Sauer, chief executive officer of the Washington State Hospital Association, said that the WISeR vendor in that state, Virtix Health, appears “particularly aggressive and unresponsive.”

From MarketWatch • Apr. 27, 2026

She played duets with Ekaterina Migunova, her deputy chief of staff and an old friend from the Zhukovsky Academy.

From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein

Related Words

• captain
• commander
• director
• head
• leader
• manager
• ruler
• superintendent
• supervisor