chancellor

noun chan·cel·lor \ ˈchan(t)-s(ə-)lər \

|Updated on: 19 Jun 2018

Examples: chancellor in a Sentence

Definition of chancellor

1 a : the secretary of a nobleman, prince, or king

b : the lord chancellor of Great Britain

c British : the chief secretary of an embassy

d : a Roman Catholic priest heading the office in which diocesan business is transacted and recorded

2 a : the titular head of a British university

b (1) : a university president

(2) : the chief executive officer in some state systems of higher education

3 a : a lay legal officer or adviser of an Anglican diocese

b : a judge in a court of chancery or equity in various states of the U.S.

4 : the chief minister of state in some European countries

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chancellorship

play \-ˌship\ noun

See chancellor defined for English-language learners

See chancellor defined for kids

Examples of chancellor in a Sentence

the new chancellor of the university

Recent Examples of chancellor from the Web

Indulging protesters can be expensive, as the University of Missouri is discovering three years after students successfully demanded the resignation of the president and chancellor.

— the editorial board, WSJ, "More Misery in Missouri," 15 June 2018
Lord Waheed Alli, chancellor of the university, told PEOPLE at the time.

— dana rose falcone, PEOPLE.com, "See How Meghan Markle's First Outing with the Queen Compares to Sister-in-Law Kate's," 14 June 2018
The Presidents’ Immigration Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, formed last December, has grown to 356 university and college presidents and chancellors, from 28, committed to helping DACA students.

— New York Times, "Bulletin Board," 6 June 2018
While the indictment didn’t identify any of the former leaders, other documents point to Prodi as well as Alfred Gusenbauer, a former chancellor of Austria, and Aleksander Kwasniewski, a former president of Poland.

— david voreacos, Bloomberg.com, "Mueller Plays Hardball With Manafort, Sending a Message to Others," 5 June 2018
In addition, three finalists for chancellor of UMass Boston withdrew this week after some faculty publicly called the candidates underqualified.

— margeaux sippell, BostonGlobe.com, "Educator Geoffrey Canada urges UMass Boston graduates to make world a better place," 25 May 2018
At the Bloomington campus, Boone fell under the wing of IU president and chancellor Herman B. Wells who housed Boone at his own residence, monitoring his progress and supporting him.

— carole carlson, Post-Tribune, "IU honors its own trail blazer, retired Gary physician," 4 May 2018
Wochit The University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh last week joined a small club of universities around the country that nobody wants to be in: Those with former presidents or chancellors who have been charged with felony crimes for financial misconduct.

— karen herzog, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Be open and let chips fall where they may, experts advise in UW-Oshkosh scandal," 28 Apr. 2018
The commission recommended the NCAA Board of Governors, currently comprised of 16 university presidents and chancellors, include five public members with full voting privileges who are not currently employed as university leaders.

— CBS News, "Commission on College Basketball says ban NCAA cheats, end "one-and-done": AP," 25 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'chancellor.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of chancellor

Middle English chanceler, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin cancellarius doorkeeper, secretary, from cancellus

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First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

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CHANCELLOR Defined for English Language Learners

chancellor

noun

Definition of chancellor for English Language Learners

: the highest government official in Germany and Austria
: the head of some U.S. universities
: the head of a British university who represents the school but who does not have many responsibilities