vice president

American  

[vahys prez-i-duhnt] / ˈvaɪs ˈprɛz ɪ dənt /

Or vice-president

noun

• vice presidents
  plural

1. an officer next in rank to a president who serves as president in the president's absence.

2. an officer next in rank to a president who serves as a deputy to the president or oversees a special division or function.

3. U.S. Government. the officer of this rank who is elected at the same time as the president and who succeeds to the presidency upon the resignation, removal, death, or disability of the president.

   Lincoln's first vice president was Hannibal Hamlin.

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vice president British  

noun

1. Abbreviation: VP, V. Pres. an officer ranking immediately below a president and serving as his deputy. A vice president takes the president's place during his absence or incapacity, after his death, and in certain other circumstances

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Usage

Why is the term vice president in the news? On August 11, 2020, Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden announced he selected California Senator Kamala Harris as his vice-presidential running mate for the 2020 presidential election.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• vice presidency
  noun
• vice-presidency
  noun
• vice presidential
  adjective
• vice-presidential
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• vice presidents
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of vice president

First recorded in 1565–75

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

vice president

“We’re seeing really significant demand from folks looking to protect downside,” said Stephen Solaka, a senior vice president at Gateway Investment Advisers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

So far, early users of Mistral Large 4 have been using the cyber capabilities of the model to perform automated penetration testing, said Corentin Petit, the startup’s vice president of solutions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

The former lieutenant governor of Ohio was appointed to be the state’s junior U.S. senator in 2025, after JD Vance became vice president.

From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2026

But the negative impact “came a little sooner and deeper than we thought,” John Pitzer, Intel’s corporate vice president of investor relations, told MarketWatch.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 29, 2026

When confronted with the charge that, despite his position as vice president, he had paid Callender to write diatribes against the president, Jefferson claimed to know nothing about it.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

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