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

From 2022 onward, Lozano has held multiple central office roles, including chief of staff, executive director of professional standards and labor relations, executive director for behavioral threat assessments and chief safety and security officer. — Austin Horn, Miami Herald, 21 July 2026

More than 10 other officials — including the agency’s chief of staff, general counsel and finance chief — also resigned. — ABC News, 21 July 2026

White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller’s wife, Katie Miller, recently gave birth to the couple’s fourth child, and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt had her second child with her husband, Nicholas Riccio, in May. — Darlene Superville, Fortune, 20 July 2026

Outside of the president, no one in Washington has more input in crafting ICE’s strategy than White House deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller, White House border czar Tom Homan, and DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin. — Anna Giaritelli, The Washington Examiner, 19 July 2026

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