1
: accorded highest rank or office
chief librarian
the company's chief executive
2
: of greatest importance or influence
the chief reasons
their chief accomplishment
1
: the upper part of a heraldic field
2
: the head of a body of persons or an organization : leader
chief of police
3
: the principal or most valuable part
would never rest till she had read the chief of the letter to him—
Jane Austen
Jane AustenSynonyms
Examples of chief in a Sentence
Adjective
the chief engineer on the project
Her job is their chief source of income.
He has many concerns, chief among them his health.
Noun
the chief of the estate was left to the eldest son
our chief is out on a business trip right now
Recent Examples on the WebQuyen Do, Los Angeles Times, 19 Apr. 2024
Morawski joined the School District in 2017 as its chief operations officer.
—Nwa Democrat-Gazette, arkansasonline.com, 19 Apr. 2024
Mind the gap Unethical use of AI could stymie its funding and development, reckons Paula Goldman, chief ethical and humane use officer at Salesforce.
—Bynick Rockel, Fortune, 19 Apr. 2024
The two top candidates, interior minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, are fervent and at times aggressive proponents of Hindu nationalism.
—Michael Kugelman, TIME, 19 Apr. 2024
That could change this time around, said Mark Haefele, the chief investment officer of UBS Global Wealth Management.
—Alan Rappeport, New York Times, 18 Apr. 2024
The executives Trump Media’s chief financial officer, Phillip Juhan, received 490,000 shares, worth $19.8 million.
—Drew Harwell, Washington Post, 7 Apr. 2024
Hard partying might be fine on a fishing trip or a golf outing, said Caitlin Crunk, Mammoth Hospital’s chief nursing officer.
—Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2024
But craft beer production likely declined in 2023, the association's chief economist Bart Watson said in a year-end presentation.
—Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 6 Apr. 2024
Detroit Free Press, 20 Apr. 2024
Over the years, Pryor challenged major corporations, military chiefs and tax collectors.
—Frank E. Lockwood, arkansasonline.com, 20 Apr. 2024
Sony Pictures Entertainment chief Tony Vinciquerra has held discussions with Apollo over the past week about teaming up on an offer, a person familiar with the matter said.
—Lucas Shaw, Fortune, 19 Apr. 2024
The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that executives at Sony Corp., including Sony Pictures chief Tony Vinciquerra, have been in touch with Apollo Global Management about making a joint bid for the entertainment company.
—Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Apr. 2024
The shorts lab launched earlier this week in Bolzano, with a panel also comprising Berlinale Shorts chief Anna Henckel-Donnersmarck and the Torino Short Film Market’s Enrico Vannucci.
—Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 18 Apr. 2024
Related Articles High-ranking Oakland cops, including deputy chief, face serious discipline for allegedly botching investigation
Oakland’s mayor believes the new top cop will last.
—Shomik Mukherjee, The Mercury News, 18 Apr. 2024
Cooper grew up in Kingman, joined the Kingman Police Department in 1991 and took over as police chief in 2020.
—Yana Kunichoff, The Arizona Republic, 17 Apr. 2024
With British companies looking for greener pastures in the U.S., top chiefs flagging low pay, and public listings feeling tedious, the post-Brexit U.K. has seen more discouraging news in the business realm than anticipated.
—Byprarthana Prakash, Fortune Europe, 9 Apr. 2024
Adjective
Now a Huntington Beach resident, Dinh joined his youngest son, Viet, former Fox Corp. chief legal officer and U.S. assistant attorney general, to watch the premiere episode.
—Quyen Do, Los Angeles Times, 19 Apr. 2024
Morawski joined the School District in 2017 as its chief operations officer.
—Nwa Democrat-Gazette, arkansasonline.com, 19 Apr. 2024
Mind the gap Unethical use of AI could stymie its funding and development, reckons Paula Goldman, chief ethical and humane use officer at Salesforce.
—Bynick Rockel, Fortune, 19 Apr. 2024
The two top candidates, interior minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, are fervent and at times aggressive proponents of Hindu nationalism.
—Michael Kugelman, TIME, 19 Apr. 2024
That could change this time around, said Mark Haefele, the chief investment officer of UBS Global Wealth Management.
—Alan Rappeport, New York Times, 18 Apr. 2024
The executives Trump Media’s chief financial officer, Phillip Juhan, received 490,000 shares, worth $19.8 million.
—Drew Harwell, Washington Post, 7 Apr. 2024
Hard partying might be fine on a fishing trip or a golf outing, said Caitlin Crunk, Mammoth Hospital’s chief nursing officer.
—Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2024
But craft beer production likely declined in 2023, the association's chief economist Bart Watson said in a year-end presentation.
—Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 6 Apr. 2024
Noun
Debt sustainability concerns Gita Gopinath, International Monetary Fund deputy chief, voiced concerns over the U.S. national debt, stressing the need to reduce the federal deficit, which equals 7% of GDP.
—Detroit Free Press, 20 Apr. 2024
Over the years, Pryor challenged major corporations, military chiefs and tax collectors.
—Frank E. Lockwood, arkansasonline.com, 20 Apr. 2024
Sony Pictures Entertainment chief Tony Vinciquerra has held discussions with Apollo over the past week about teaming up on an offer, a person familiar with the matter said.
—Lucas Shaw, Fortune, 19 Apr. 2024
The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that executives at Sony Corp., including Sony Pictures chief Tony Vinciquerra, have been in touch with Apollo Global Management about making a joint bid for the entertainment company.
—Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Apr. 2024
The shorts lab launched earlier this week in Bolzano, with a panel also comprising Berlinale Shorts chief Anna Henckel-Donnersmarck and the Torino Short Film Market’s Enrico Vannucci.
—Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 18 Apr. 2024
Related Articles High-ranking Oakland cops, including deputy chief, face serious discipline for allegedly botching investigation
Oakland’s mayor believes the new top cop will last.
—Shomik Mukherjee, The Mercury News, 18 Apr. 2024
Cooper grew up in Kingman, joined the Kingman Police Department in 1991 and took over as police chief in 2020.
—Yana Kunichoff, The Arizona Republic, 17 Apr. 2024
With British companies looking for greener pastures in the U.S., top chiefs flagging low pay, and public listings feeling tedious, the post-Brexit U.K. has seen more discouraging news in the business realm than anticipated.
—Byprarthana Prakash, Fortune Europe, 9 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'chief.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near chief
Cite this Entry
“Chief.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chief. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
chief
2 of 2 noun
: the head of a group : leader
chief of police
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