kingpin

noun

king·​pin ˈkiŋ-ˌpin 

1

: the chief person in a group or undertaking

2

: any of several bowling pins: such as

a

: headpin

b

: the pin that stands in the middle of a triangular arrangement of bowling pins

3

a

: kingbolt

b

: a pin connecting the two parts of a knuckle joint (as in an automobile steering linkage)

Synonyms

• big
• big boy
• big cheese
• big gun
• big leaguer
• big shot
• big wheel
• big-timer
• bigfoot
• biggie
• bigwig
• fat cat
• heavy
• heavy hitter
• heavyweight
• high-muck-a-muck
• high-muckety-muck
• honcho
• kahuna
• kingfish
• major leaguer
• muckety-muck
• muck-a-muck
• mucky-muck
• nabob
• nawab
• nibs
• nob [chiefly British]
• pooh-bah
• poo-bah
• wheel

Examples of kingpin in a Sentence

kingpins of the movie industry

a police sting that nabbed several kingpins of the city's drug trade

Recent Examples on the Web

Other clips depict him as an obsessive artist, poring over every detail, incapable of leaving the studio, and as a benevolent and jovial kingpin with a private plane and a distressing number of tracksuits, a hookah always smoldering. —Brady Brickner-Wood, The New Yorker, 5 Sep. 2024

Ruto will have to adapt to a new order in which the risk of countenancing large-scale corruption outweighs the risk of alienating old political kingpins. —Michelle Gavin, Foreign Affairs, 23 July 2024

Salas explained that much of the storytelling balances her journey of being a mother, and the importance of family while being a ruthless drug kingpin. —Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 6 Aug. 2024

Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson is laughing off claims that his massive Power franchise was ripped off from a former drug kingpin’s life story. —Glenn Garner, Deadline, 4 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1773, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Kids Definition

kingpin

noun

king·​pin ˈkiŋ-ˌpin 

1

: a pin that stands in the middle of a triangular arrangement of bowling pins

also : headpin

2

: the chief person in a group or undertaking