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chief

chief

1.9
A person who leads a group or community
  • noun
  • /tʃif/
translation icon : jefe
  • I spoke to the chief about that.
  • chief of staff
  • police chief
  • editor-in-chief

And you know, this detective works for the chief of administration.

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Examples

  • Dean had been the chief scientist for SDI.

  • Today's guest is Border Patrol Chief Chris Clem.

  • Say hi to the chief for me.

  • And you know, this detective works for the chief of administration.

  • His title changed to Editor in Chief for part of his term.

    Academic text (2011)
  • Send a message to the police chief of Gary, Indiana.

  • Les is the ground crew chief, and he checked it out, and it's okay.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • I'd like to speak to the Silver Creek Chief of Police or the Sheriff.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • Eventually, Kennedy made Feinberg his chief of staff, which lasted two years.

    Academic text (2011)
  • The fire chief made an announcement regarding the new safety protocols.

Synonyms

leader
vschief
1.0

A person who guides and directs a group, organization, or country

is the specific term for the person with the highest authority in a group
boss
vschief
1.0

A person in charge of a group or workers

is the broader term for highest authority across any group
commander
vschief
3.6

A person in charge of a group who gives orders and leads them

is the usual term for highest authority not restricted to military roles
head
vschief
2.2

A person who is in charge of a group or organization

is specifically the topmost authority across a whole group or community
CEO
vschief
678 3.5

A person who leads a company and makes its big decisions

is the wider term for highest authority across groups beyond corporations
president
vschief
133 2.5

A person who leads meetings of an organization or committee

is the general highest authority term rather than a meeting role
34 3.6

A person who leads a company and makes its main decisions

is the general title for highest authority outside just companies
commander-in-chief
vschief
  • Formal
23 4.6

The senior military officer who leads a country's armed forces

is the general term for highest authority not limited to military power
top dog
vschief
  • Informal
21 4.6

A person with the most power in a group

is the regular term for highest authority rather than casual slang
chieftain
vschief
20 7.9

A person who leads a group like a tribe or clan

is the general term for highest authority across modern groups
honcho
vschief
  • Informal
20 8.9

A person in charge of a team or project

is the neutral general term for highest authority, not casual speech
head honcho
vschief
  • Slang
9 6.3

A person who is in charge of a company or group

is the standard formal designation for the highest authority
supremo
vschief
3 8.4

A person who is the most important leader in a group or organization

is the neutral term for the highest authority in a group

Antonyms

295 1.6

A person who supports a leader and accepts their direction

21 4.8

Lower in rank or importance and under someone's control

Compounds

172 5.2

A senior military officer who leads a branch and manages its operations and administration

93 3.2

An officer who is in charge of a police department

88 6.1

A person who has the highest position in a group, like an editor or commander

77 5.5

An official title for the US President as the leader who runs the government

64 4.9

The person with highest authority over a country's armed forces

editor in chief
  • Literature
49 4.4

A person who leads a newspaper or magazine and decides what goes in it

35 6.3

The top judge who leads a country's highest court

A person who leads a company and makes its main decisions

23 4.6

The senior military officer who leads a country's armed forces

A senior manager who looks after a company's money, makes budgets, and prepares financial reports

15 4.9

A senior manager who runs a company's daily work and reports to the chief executive officer

14 2.9

A person in charge of firefighters and their work in a city or town

A senior doctor who leads the hospital doctors and makes sure medical care is safe

3 4.7

A person who leads a group of people in a traditional community

3 4.2

A leader of a Native American tribe

chief petty officer
  • Specialized
2 7.3

A senior navy sailor who leads and trains other sailors

A senior helper who leads other support staff and has extra responsibility

The main public representative of a country who may also lead the government

1 7.0

A senior police officer who leads the police in a county, especially in the United Kingdom

big white chief
  • Informal
1 7.9

A person in charge whom people jokingly call very important

1 7.3

An important government official in charge of a department who coordinates other departments

A person who leads the team that plans how things look and work

A person who leads an Arab village, tribe, or family and has power in the community

A small animal like a rabbit that lives in rocky mountain areas in North America

6.3

A high-ranking sailor in the US Navy or Coast Guard who leads and trains other sailors

A person who leads planning and sets the main strategy for a group

How Senior

chief
1.9
head
2.2
manager
1.6
supervisor
346 2.8

Surface Forms

chief singular
chiefs plural

Etymology

Chief comes from the old Latin word caput, which means 'head', and you can see the same idea in English words like captain and capital. So a chief is literally the 'head' of a group, the leader.