chief

American  

[cheef] / tʃif /

noun

chiefs plural

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.

Synonym Usage

See capital ¹.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

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

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• chiefs
  plural

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

See Examples For:

chief chiefs

The company’s chief investment officer, Chance Finucane, explained further about Oxbow’s caution looking ahead to 2027, in a separate interview with David Lin.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 17, 2026

“Once everything is shut down ... we’ll pump the water out of the hole that we have,” Anselmo Collins, DWP’s chief operating officer and senior assistant general manager said Thursday.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026

Now that “good enough”—and sometimes even “pretty amazing”—AI is available to iPhone users and Fortune 500 chief information officers alike, these companies will have to find new moats.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

A Meningitis B vaccination programme targeting young people and university students in Northern Ireland will roll out from 31 July, NI's chief medical officer has said.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

As the brigade’s chief of staff, Arkhipov could have served aboard any of the four subs heading out to sea.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin

Despite his controversies, UFC chiefs appeared to believe McGregor would still draw eyes to the sport and make the promotion money without affecting the brand.

From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026

The role of prime minister does not typically include a say on military strategy or frontline operations, where Zelensky and his military chiefs call the shots.

From Barron's ● Jul. 12, 2026

Forward guidance has been used by previous Fed chiefs to shape financial-market views on the economy and expectations for interest-rate changes.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 1, 2026

Past ICE directors have been police chiefs and high-level prosecutors, more senior positions than Schroyer held in Oklahoma.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026

Olivia gets sick from, the food prepared by any of the chiefs wives.

From "The Color Purple" by Alice Walker

Related Words

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