preside
Americanverb (used without object)
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presides,
present (3rd person singular)
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presided,
past participle, past
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presiding
present participle
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to occupy the place of authority or control, as in an assembly or meeting; act as president or chairperson.
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to exercise management or control (usually followed byover ).
The lawyer presided over the estate.
verb
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to sit in or hold a position of authority, as over a meeting
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to exercise authority; control
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to occupy a position as an instrumentalist
he presided at the organ
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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presidesimple
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presidessimple
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have presidedperfect
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has presidedperfect
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am presidingprogressive
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are presidingprogressive
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is presidingprogressive
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have been presidingperfect progressive
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has been presidingperfect progressive
Past
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presidedsimple
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had presidedperfect
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was presidingprogressive
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were presidingprogressive
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had been presidingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of preside
1605–15; < Latin praesidēre to preside over, literally, sit in front of, equivalent to prae- pre- + -sidēre, combining form of sedēre to sit 1
Explanation
When you preside over something, you're acting as the leader or president. The captain of a club presides over the meetings. Whether your title is President or not, when you preside, you're acting as a president or another kind of leader. A judge presides over a courtroom. The owner of a business presides over staff meetings. If you work in an office, your boss presides over the office. Presiding can mean ruling or just supervising something. If you preside over something, you're in charge of it.
Vocabulary lists containing preside
"Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death" by Patrick Henry (1775)
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Just Mercy
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This Week In Words: Current Events Vocab for January 23–29, 2021
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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:
That’s when Kevin Warsh, President Donald Trump’s nominee, is expected to preside over his first meeting as the new chairman.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 30, 2026
It’s a two-year term to preside over Southern Section Council meetings.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2026
The pope is scheduled to preside over Mass from that basilica on April 22, the last full day of his trip.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2026
Marking his debut as a quiz show host, Sheen will preside over 100 episodes due to be broadcast later this year.
From BBC ● Mar. 16, 2026
As mayor almost his only duty was to preside at banquets, given on the Shire-holidays, which occurred at frequent intervals.
From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien
Now he’s married with seven kids and presides over something of an online personal-finance empire that includes an app, books, workshops and social-media communities.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026
Consider the decision from the 6th Circuit, which incorporated Consumers’ Research into its reasoning, and which presides over Kentucky, home of the Kentucky Derby.
From Slate ● Jun. 12, 2026
In Texas, the county judge presides over and votes in the county’s commissioner court, which handles county government administration.
From Salon ● Jun. 11, 2026
André De Shields, Tony-winning royalty, presides over this Jellicle Ball in the role of Old Deuteronomy.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026
“Yes, it’s a disgrace,” agrees the caustic, somewhat original, and entirely imposing lady who presides over this litter.
From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote
Her grandmother, the first woman his grandfather married, presided as matriarch over a farm where the wives lived together, and often helped choose the newcomers herself.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
He left office in 2010 as a blue-collar hero who presided over a commodity-fueled economic boom that helped lift 30 million people out of poverty.
From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026
Warsh this week presided over his second meeting of the 12-person Federal Open Market Committee, which convenes in Washington eight times a year to determine where to set interest rates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
Al-Khelaifi presided over a name change - to European Football Clubs.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
This was particularly true in courts presided over by enlightened judges who had been appointed by the United Party.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
The court adjourned until August 27 to check whether the tests "correspond to Diego Armando Maradona or someone else," presiding judge Alberto Gaig said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
A dissent by presiding Justice Alison Tucher concluded the majority misread the proposition, which she said must adhere to the state’s civil rights laws.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
His client was first removed from court last week after being accused of disrupting proceedings during a heated exchange with the presiding judge about the order and schedule of defence arguments.
From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026
Why do so many readers I speak to believe they can be a fair judge presiding over every moment of this couple’s dreams and disappointments?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026
She was busy at the stove, presiding over a skillet of fried spinach with radishes, and could not hear me because of the drone of the exhaust fan and the fierce scrapes of her spatula.
From "Interpreter of Maladies" by Jhumpa Lahiri
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.
