header

American  

[hed-er] / ˈhɛd ər /

noun

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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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

It was ugly, basic - on this occasion unsuccessful, although Maguire did have a header cleared off the line by Yukinari Sugawara in a rare moment of danger for Japan's defence.

From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026

"McLean - in it comes. Ferguson's header, given away, but it breaks to… Tierney! History! History for Scotland and Kieran Tierney is the hero with an absolute piledriver. Surely that's it done now!"

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

Nine weeks later she scored the equaliser for England in the European Championship final against Spain with a predatory header from seven yards.

From BBC • Mar. 23, 2026

It came after Nico O'Reilly's second header in four minutes effectively sealed Manchester City's 2-0 Carabao Cup final victory against Arsenal, giving Guardiola a record fifth win in the competition.

From BBC • Mar. 22, 2026

Once I hit a header so hard it knocked me off my feet.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam

Related Words

• dunk