chief of staff

noun phrase

1

: the ranking officer of a staff in the armed forces serving as principal adviser to a commander

2

: the ranking officer of the army or air force and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

Examples of chief of staff in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Congressman Andy Barr announced the death of Tatum Dale, his campaign manager and former deputy chief of staff, in a statement from Barr's congressional office. —Keely Doll, Louisville Courier Journal, 25 Dec. 2025

Before working with the city, Firestone served as assistant attorney general and chief of staff to former AG Maura Healey. —Grace Zokovitch, Boston Herald, 23 Dec. 2025

In 2024, Libby Leffler, Sheryl Sandberg’s former chief of staff at Facebook (now Meta), publicly launched an online prenup company called First. —Jennifer Wilson, New Yorker, 22 Dec. 2025

The mayor’s chief of staff, Carlos Ignacio Suarez — Francis’ distant cousin — thinks that experience contributed to his boss’ seemingly relentless pursuit of success. —Miami Herald, 21 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1862, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for chief of staff

• autograph
• biograph
• cenotaph
• chronograph
• epigraph
• epitaph
• hodograph
• holograph
• hydrograph
• lithograph
• micrograph
• monograph

Kids Definition

chief of staff

1

: the ranking officer of a staff in the armed forces who advises a commander

2

: the ranking officer of the army or air force