mayor

noun

may·​or ˈmā-ər  ˈmer 

especially before names (ˌ)mer

: an official elected or appointed to act as chief executive or nominal head of a city, town, or borough

mayoral

ˈmā-ə-rəl 

ˈmer-əl;

  ˌmā-ˈȯr-əl 

adjective

Examples of mayor in a Sentence

the mayor of New York

Recent Examples on the Web

Goldsmith is an award-winning Union-Tribune contributing columnist and former Superior Court judge, San Diego city attorney, Poway mayor and state legislator. —Jan Goldsmith, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Mar. 2026

Kiswani has been a lightning rod for political controversy, even taking stands against Mayor Mamdani, the city’s first Muslim mayor and staunch proponent of Palestinian rights. —Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 27 Mar. 2026

Sacramento’s 57th mayor and new city manager joined The Bee’s opinion editor Marcos Bretón, and City Hall Reporter Ishani Desai for a Q&A discussion Thursday night. —Kat Tran, Sacbee.com, 27 Mar. 2026

Candidates Scotty McMasters and Bob Headley are running to replace Michael Todd, who has served as the mayor of Grain Valley for 14 years. —Jack Harvel, Kansas City Star, 27 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English maire, from Anglo-French, from Latin major greater — more at major

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for mayor

• gayer
• grayer
• greyer
• layer
• nayar
• payer
• payor
• peyer
• player
• preyer
• sayer
• slayer

Kids Definition

mayor

noun

may·​or ˈmā-ər  ˈme(-)ər 

: an official elected to act as head of a city or borough

mayoral

ˈmā-ə-rəl  ˈme- ə- 

adjective

Legal Definition

mayor

noun

may·​or ˈmā-ər, ˈmer 

: an official elected or appointed to act as chief executive or nominal head of a city, town, or borough