dean

noun

1
a
: the head of the chapter of a collegiate or cathedral church
b
: a Roman Catholic priest who supervises one district of a diocese
2
a
: the head of a division, faculty, college, or school of a university
b
: a college or secondary school administrator in charge of counseling and disciplining students
3
dean intransitive verb
deanship noun

Examples of dean in a Sentence

She's the dean of the university's business school. the dean of liberal arts
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The following Naperville residents have completed college/university degrees or have been named to their school’s dean’s list, honor roll or similar academic achievement list. Names, degrees and honors appear below as provided by the respective schools. Naperville Sun, Chicago Tribune, 30 June 2025 The program would combine courses taught by Kennedy and Munk faculty members, according to the deans of both institutions. Landon Mion, FOXNews.com, 28 June 2025 This is the domain of Warren Buffett, considered by many the dean of U.S. stock pickers. John Dorfman, Forbes.com, 23 June 2025 Harold Koh, Sterling professor of international law and a former dean of Yale Law School, served in the Justice and State Departments under four presidents from both parties. Jacob Rosen, CBS News, 11 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for dean

Word History

Etymology

Middle English deen, from Anglo-French deen, deien, from Late Latin decanus chief of ten, from Greek dekanos, from deka ten — more at ten

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of dean was in the 13th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dean.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dean. Accessed 8 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

dean

noun
1
: the head of the chapter of a cathedral church
2
a
: the head of a division, faculty, college, or school of a university
b
: a college or secondary school administrator in charge of counseling or disciplining students
3
: the senior member of a group
the dean of the diplomatic corps
deanship noun

Biographical Definition

Dean

biographical name

Sir Patrick 1909–1994 British diplomat

More from Merriam-Webster on dean

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!