leadership
Americannoun
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leaderships
plural
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the position or function of a leader, a person who guides or directs a group.
He managed to maintain his leadership of the party despite heavy opposition.
- Synonyms:
- hegemony, stewardship, governorship, control, directorship, management, administration
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ability to lead.
As early as sixth grade she displayed remarkable leadership potential.
- Synonyms:
- clout, sway, effectiveness, command, influence, authoritativeness
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an act or instance of leading; guidance; direction.
They prospered under his strong leadership.
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the leaders of a group.
The union leadership agreed to arbitrate.
noun
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the position or function of a leader
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the period during which a person occupies the position of leader
during her leadership very little was achieved
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the ability to lead
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( as modifier )
leadership qualities
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the leaders as a group of a party, union, etc
the union leadership is now very reactionary
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of leadership
Explanation
Leadership is the action of leading a group of people. Or, the actual people who lead the group. If you think you have leadership skills, you better be able to rally the troops and get the job done. Leadership can be the act of leading, or a name for the group of people doing the leading. The House leadership, newly emboldened by election results, may set an ambitious agenda for the new session of Congress. Your own leadership skills may be called into question if your entire staff resigns and goes to work for your competitor.
Vocabulary lists containing leadership
"Speaking Up"
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"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 7
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"Speeches on the Little Rock Nine"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Live Nation had hired the firm in December, in part because of its close ties to DOJ leadership, a person familiar with the matter said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
This shows that chipmakers, which have suffered from a rotation out of early-cycle AI stocks, are not likely to retake leadership once again in the near-term, the strategists said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026
It’s clear that Raising Cane’s leadership is aware of these advantages, as it has zero intentions of going public in the near future.
From Slate ● Aug. 24, 2026
Beyond the dispute over Raman’s leadership of the committee, there are clear policy disagreements between the mayor and the council member over the best way to combat the crisis.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026
After the convention, the leadership presented this declaration, plus a petition with eight thousand signatures supporting women’s suffrage, to the Ohio lawmakers revising the state’s constitution.
From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling
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That represents only 0.1 percent of the total, but would be a significant sum for the leaderships of FIFA's poorer or smaller members.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
While both groups have recruited new fighters to fill their ranks, their military leaderships are still in disarray, some of the people familiar with intelligence said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2025
“An effective U.S. deterrent threat must hold at risk what contemporary hostile leaderships value most, because they are the audience that must be deterred,” the report states.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 27, 2023
The allies have sought to limit publicity around the trial period, which comes amid unusually intense strains between their leaderships over wider Palestinian policies and other issues.
From Reuters ● Aug. 1, 2023
New men in party leaderships came in the composite Cabinet of Moderate leanings led by Charles Dupuy in April, 1893.
From A History of the Third French Republic by C. H. C. (Charles Henry Conrad) Wright
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.