headman

noun

head·​man
1
b
ˈhed-ˈman How to pronounce headman (audio)
-ˌman
: a lesser chief of a primitive community
2

Examples of headman in a Sentence

as headman at the newspaper 20 years ago, he hired the then-promising young reporter who won this year's Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting
Recent Examples on the Web According to Matchroom headman Eddie Hearn, Stevenson tore a tendon in his hand. Brian Mazique, Forbes, 11 Sep. 2024 In December, 1639, several local Munsee headmen sold five hundred acres of land adjoining the river to Jonas Bronck, a Swede who had arrived on his own ship, the Fire of Troy. Ian Frazier, The New Yorker, 15 July 2024 The Muscogee Creek headman Tomochichi, for example, visited London in 1734 and expressed surprise that the British king lived in a palace with an unnecessarily large number of rooms. Kathleen Duval, The Atlantic, 2 Apr. 2024 Following orders to investigate drug use in Phetchabun province, the local sheriff and village headman in Bung Sam Phan subdistrict, some 150 miles north of Bangkok, poked around schools, factories and temples in search of drug addicts and dealers so they could be sent for rehabilitation. Bryan Pietsch, Washington Post, 1 Dec. 2022 See all Example Sentences for headman 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'headman.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of headman was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near headman

Cite this Entry

“Headman.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/headman. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

headman

noun
head·​man ˈhed-ˈman How to pronounce headman (audio)
-ˌman
: one who is a leader (as of a tribe, clan, or village) : chief
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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