leader of the opposition

noun phrase

: the principal member of the opposition party in a British legislative body who is given the status of a salaried government official and an important role in organizing the business of the house

Examples of leader of the opposition in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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On Wednesday, with the book’s contents already public, Starmer stood up for his weekly grilling by the leader of the opposition, Kemi Badenoch, at Prime Minister’s Questions. Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 13 Sep. 2025 Newsom positions himself as leader of the opposition. Jesse Byrnes, The Hill, 11 June 2025 Emerging as the Druze leader of the opposition to the Syrian government is Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, one of three holy men revered by Syrian Druze. Taylor Luck, Christian Science Monitor, 11 June 2025 Front-runner Lee Jae-myung has clashed with Yoon's government as leader of the opposition, after closely losing to Yoon in the 2022 presidential election. Se Eun Gong, NPR, 2 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for leader of the opposition

Word History

First Known Use

1771, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of leader of the opposition was in 1771

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Cite this Entry

“Leader of the opposition.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leader%20of%20the%20opposition. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.

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