honcho

noun

hon·​cho ˈhän-(ˌ)chō 

plural honchos

: boss, big shot

also : hotshot sense 1

Did you know?

A relic of the large U.S. presence in Japan in the years following World War II, the word honcho comes from the Japanese word hanchō meaning “leader of the squad, section, group.” We are uncertain of the exact route by which honcho found its way into American military argot in the mid-1950s, though it is known that the Japanese applied hanchō to British or Australian officers in charge of work parties in prisoner-of-war camps. By the 1960s, the word had become part of colloquial American jargon.

Synonyms of honcho

• heavyweight
• big
• heavy
• magnate
• bigwig

Examples of honcho in a Sentence

the office was all abuzz because some honchos from corporate headquarters were coming for a visit

he's definitely the head honcho in that company

Recent Examples on the Web

American marketing honcho Bob Shelvin—now an environmental activist. —Stephanie Rafanelli, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Feb. 2026

With the support of Strand Releasing honcho Marcus Hu, Araki reached out to Beau Genot, who’d handled post-production on the original film. —Peter Debruge, Variety, 10 Feb. 2026

The Bad News Bears and work on the screenplay for Cool Runnings, cast Gene Hackman as the coach and Camilla Sparv — ex-wife of then-Paramount honcho Robert Evans — as Redford’s love interest. —Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 1 Feb. 2026

Alex Martins, longtime Magic honcho and UCF alumnus, currently chairs UCF’s Board of Trustees. —Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Japanese hanchō squad leader, from han squad + chō head, chief

First Known Use

1945, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing honcho

• head honcho

Rhymes for honcho

• broncho
• concho
• poncho