header

American  

[hed-er] / ˈhɛd ər /

noun

• headers
  plural

1. a person or thing that removes or puts a head on something.

2. a reaping machine that cuts off and gathers only the heads of the grain.

3. a chamber to which the ends of a number of tubes are connected so that water or steam may pass freely from one tube to the other.

4. Automotive. an exhaust manifold.

5. Building Trades.

   1. a brick or stone laid in a wall or the like so that its shorter ends are exposed or parallel to the surface.

   2. a framing member crossing and supporting the ends of joists, studs, or rafters so as to transfer their weight to parallel joists, studs, or rafters.

6. Informal. a plunge or dive headfirst, as into water.

   He stumbled and took a header into the ditch.

7. Soccer. a pass or shot made by heading the ball.

8. a sign that is part of or attached to the top of a rack displaying merchandise.

9. Computers. a line of information placed at the top of a page for purposes of identification.

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header British  

/ ˈhɛdə /

noun

1. Also called: header tank.  a reservoir, tank, or hopper that maintains a gravity feed or a static fluid pressure in an apparatus

2. a manifold for distributing a fluid supply amongst a number of passages

3. a machine that trims the heads from castings, forgings, etc, or one that forms heads, as in wire, to make nails

4. a person who operates such a machine

5. a brick or stone laid across a wall so that its end is flush with the outer surface Compare stretcher

6. the action of striking a ball with the head

7. informal a headlong fall or dive

8. computing

   1. a block of data on a tape or disk providing information about the size, location, etc, of a file

   2. ( as modifier )

      header card

      header label

9. dialect a mentally unbalanced person

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• headers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of header

First recorded in 1400–50, header is from the late Middle English word heder. See head, -er ¹

Explanation

A header is a separate bit of text at the top of a printed page. A header might be the title of the novel you're reading, which is repeated on each page of the book. One kind of header — also called a "page header" — is a chapter title, which is often printed at the top of every page. It's called a header because it's printed at the top, or head, of the page. When you format a long paper for school, you may include page numbers as headers. In any case, a header is set apart from the main text of a document and is sometimes printed in a larger or bolder font.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

header headers

In the 88th minute, Marcinkowski became the hero by preventing the equalizer with a great save on a header by Jasinski inside the six-yard box.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026

His early save, diving low to his left to keep out Raul Jimenez's header, was a crucial moment of brilliance.

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

As French fullback Lucas Digne attempted to clear his own header, he swung around to boot the ball and kicked Yamal instead.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

He’s 6-foot-2, a gifted header of the ball, and can fill in all over the park.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026

The entire study session took a header after that, with Elliot getting more and more frustrated until I began to worry that he was going to chuck the book at my head.

From "Glitch" by Laura Martin

Bosnia and Herzegovina defender Nikola Katic, back, and Switzerland midfielder Remo Freuler headers the ball.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 27, 2026

A 2026 study of roughly 300 male amateur players found temporary increases in brain-damage markers after heading, with stronger effects after frequent and high-impact headers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026

High schools, clubs, colleges and governing bodies should track heading exposure, limit headers in training, and eliminate repetitive heading drills.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026

Czech Republic placed three players deeper who could make runs into more attacking positions to win headers with momentum while leaving players positioned closer to goal who were man-marked.

From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2026

Mr. McDuff had built it back with posts as thick as telephone poles and crossbeams that could have been used as headers in the mine.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam

Related Words

• dunk