Synonyms

president

American

[prez-i-duhnt] / ˈprɛz ɪ dənt /

noun

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

sworn in as the 56th president of Mexico.
an officer appointed or elected to preside over an organized body of persons.
the chief officer of a college, university, society, corporation, etc.
a person who presides.

president British

/ ˈprɛzɪdənt, ˌprɛzɪˈdɛnʃəl /

noun

(often capital) the chief executive or head of state of a republic, esp of the US
(in the US) the chief executive officer of a company, corporation, etc
a person who presides over an assembly, meeting, etc
the chief executive officer of certain establishments of higher education

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

presidential adjective
presidentially adverb
presidentship noun

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”; preside, -ent

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.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president "has been made been aware of the proposal, and a response will come".

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

"Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris are free and on their way to France, after three and a half years in detention in Iran," the French president wrote on X.

From Barron's • Apr. 7, 2026

ET to ask MarketWatch’s Christine Ji and IBM’s vice president of AI Foundations, David Cox, your AI questions in real time.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 7, 2026

“The president has apparently drawn a line in the sand—which he has changed before,” said Michael Sheldon, vice president and senior portfolio manager for Washington Trust Wealth Management.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

Hubler conferred with Morgan Stanley’s president, Zoe Cruz; together they decided that they’d rather keep the subprime risk than realize a loss that amounted to a few tens of millions of dollars.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023