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.

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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

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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

These conflicts appeared to be heading for a reckoning, but then things went quiet.

From Slate ● Aug. 28, 2026

They were heading towards the Chinese border when they became stuck in what they thought was a traffic jam.

From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026

Marvell shares had nearly tripled on the year heading into earnings.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 27, 2026

Holidaymakers are grinning and posing before heading to the next beauty spot.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

He was heading for the big green chair in the corner.

From "All About Sam" by Lois Lowry

Using a marker, he wrote two headings on a poster: “What We’re Here For” and “What We’re Not Here For.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026

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

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

Military analysts say the phrasing used in the headings looks credible and is consistent with similar classified documents revealed in the past.

From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2024

In two weeks, she had memorized the two thousand or so names or headings on the file box.

From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith

Related Words

• route