Showing results for "heading"

• present participle of head.

heading

American  

[hed-ing] / ˈhɛd ɪŋ /

noun

• headings
  plural

1. something that serves as a head, top, or front.

2. a title or caption of a page, chapter, etc.

3. a section of the subject of a discourse; a main division of a topic or theme.

4. the compass direction toward which a traveler or vehicle is or should be moving; course.

5. an active underground mining excavation in the earth, as a drift or raise being or about to be driven.

6. Aeronautics. the angle between the axis from front to rear of an aircraft and some reference line, as magnetic north.

---

heading British  

/ ˈhɛdɪŋ /

noun

1. a title for a page, paragraph, chapter, etc

2. a main division, as of a lecture, speech, essay, etc

3. mining

   1. a horizontal tunnel

   2. the end of such a tunnel

4. the angle between the direction of an aircraft and a specified meridian, often due north

5. the compass direction parallel to the keel of a vessel

6. the act of heading

7. anything that serves as a head

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonheading
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• headings
  plural

---

Etymology

Origin of heading

First recorded in 1250–1300, heading is from the Middle English word hefding. See head, -ing ¹

---

Explanation

A heading is a word, phrase, or sentence at the beginning of a written passage that explains what it's about. A heading is very similar to a title. A heading is similar to a caption, a line below a photograph that briefly explains it. Headings show up at the top of paragraphs, chapters, or pages, and they give you an idea of what the subject is. You might write a heading for each chapter of your novel, or on each page of your French club newsletter. The 1300's meaning of heading was "beheading," and it wasn't until the late 1800's that it came to mean "title."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

heading headings

Even Yorkville Ives analyst Daniel Ives, known for his bullish views on the tech sector, acknowledged that he and investors have gotten “more selective” on the AI-exposed stocks that could outperform heading into next year.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 5, 2026

It is heading for 0.7%, the Bank said, between July and September, before slowing in the three months to the end of the year.

From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026

“Employers are holding on to the workers they have heading into the holidays, and the hiring they are announcing is largely short-term, seasonal work,” said Andy Challenger, chief revenue officer for Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2026

The actor, who denied the charges heading into prosecution, was also acquitted of two rape counts and one count of attempted indecent assault.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026

Before heading for the scree slope, they’d each gathered a faggot of firewood, and prepared a little piece of fire to bring with them.

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver

The writer, thanks to their ability to improve page rankings via keywords and section headings, will have created an article that looks like information but is really a thinly disguised advertisement.

From Slate ● Mar. 28, 2026

Sign headings read “Washington’s Deceit” and “Washington’s Death and a Renewed Hope for Freedom.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 25, 2026

Inside the vehicle, the chief said, officers also recovered three cell phones, handheld radios and documents with the headings “Homeland Security Investigations” and “U.S. Customs and Border Protection.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 27, 2025

Most of these counterfeit documents, however, are easy to spot because they clearly diverge from official formatting - showing erroneous spacing and letter headings, or containing significant grammatical or spelling errors.

From BBC ● Apr. 29, 2024

It had tidy columns with block letter headings and drawings on nearly every page.

From "Out of Darkness" by Ashley Hope Pérez

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---

Related Words

• route

---