chairman
Americannoun
PLURAL
chairmen-
the presiding officer of a meeting, committee, board, etc.
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the administrative head of a department in a high school, college, or university.
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someone employed to carry or wheel a person in a chair.
verb (used with object)
noun
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Also called: chairperson. chairwoman. a person who presides over a company's board of directors, a committee, a debate, an administrative department, etc
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history someone who carries a sedan chair
Usage
Chairman can seem inappropriate when applied to a woman, while chairwoman can be offensive. Chair and chairperson can be applied to either a man or a woman; chair is generally preferred to chairperson
Gender
Is it chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson? See chairperson.
Other Word Forms
- chairmanship noun
Etymology
Origin of chairman
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.
Dr Jack Fletcher, chairman of the BMA's resident doctors committee, said as the government had failed to come forward with a credible plan the union had been left with no choice.
From BBC
During his time in Parliament, he served as Minister for School Standards in the Department for Education and was appointed as deputy chairman of the Conservative Party last year.
From BBC
"Obviously if that occurred, that would be very serious, and I agree that that would be an illegal act," Turner, a former chairman of the Intelligence Committee, told CBS.
From BBC
Reports that White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett has emerged as the front-runner to be the next chairman of the Fed also appeared to help keep the rally going this week.
From MarketWatch
In a letter to the Commons Treasury select committee, OBR chairman Richard Hughes revealed that he also told the chancellor on 17 September that the public finances were in better shape than widely thought.
From BBC
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.
