president

American  

[prez-i-duhnt] / ˈprɛz ɪ dənt /

noun

• presidents
  plural

1. the highest executive officer of a modern republic, as the chief executive of the United States.

   sworn in as the 56th president of Mexico.

2. an officer appointed or elected to preside over an organized body of persons.

3. the chief officer of a college, university, society, corporation, etc.

4. a person who presides.

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president British  

/ ˈprɛzɪdənt /

noun

1. (often capital) the chief executive or head of state of a republic, esp of the US

2. (in the US) the chief executive officer of a company, corporation, etc

3. a person who presides over an assembly, meeting, etc

4. the chief executive officer of certain establishments of higher education

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• presidentship
  noun
• presidential
  adjective
• presidentially
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• presidents
  plural

Etymology

Origin of president

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Latin praesident- (stem of praesidēns ), noun use of present participle of praesidēre “to preside over, sit in front of”; see preside, -ent

Explanation

The president is the person officially in charge — whether it’s of a republic, a company, a college, or a fan club. This is a word for a leader, like the President of the United States or the president of the National Football League Players' Union. Many organizations have presidents, and they're usually elected by members of that group. When it’s followed by a name, the title president gets a capital p, as in President Obama. Whether with a P or p, the job of a president is to preside in a formal or official capacity.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

president presidents

Accused of “moral failure” by the fellowship, Bakker resigned and Falwell replaced him as president of PTL.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

But the president has never had to confront a prop that has stopped cooperating.

From Salon ● Oct. 6, 2026

“They may not even know what might be on the ballot that might be important to them,” said Chantelle Wilkinson, the coalition’s vice president of strategic partnerships and campaigns.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026

Gustavson is currently president of Chevron’s new energies division.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

We don’t know who won yet, but the winner will be the 20th president of the United States.

From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman

The presidents of Egypt, Somalia, Sudan and Eritrea -- all of whom have difficult relations with Ethiopia -- were set to meet in the Egyptian city of Alamein on Sunday to discuss the conflict.

From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026

Chivayo was known for his lavish lifestyle, close ties to some African presidents and lucrative government contracts that had repeatedly attracted scrutiny.

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

Prove your skills by playing today’s quiz, with questions about King Henry VIII’s wives, U.S. vice presidents, the French Revolution, and more.

From Slate ● Sep. 30, 2026

The deals were often named after city streets or U.S. presidents, obscuring who was borrowing the insurers’ money or the quality of those investments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026

The story of these presidents and their connection to slavery is a complicated one.

From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis