mayor

noun

may·​or ˈmā-ər  ˈmer 

especially before names (ˌ)mer

: an official elected or appointed to act as chief executive or nominal head of a city, town, or borough

mayoral

ˈmā-ə-rəl 

ˈmer-əl;

  ˌmā-ˈȯr-əl 

adjective

Examples of mayor in a Sentence

the mayor of New York

Recent Examples on the Web

Reports of politically motivated violence are distressingly common – ranging from mass shootings, car-ramming attacks and assaults at demonstrations to assassination attempts, kidnappings and threats targeting mayors, governors, political activists and members of Congress. —Justin Pickett, The Conversation, 17 Nov. 2025

Mamdani will be the youngest mayor of New York in over a century and the city's first Muslim mayor. —Robert Birsel, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Nov. 2025

Villaraigosa, a Democrat and former Los Angeles mayor, focused his response on existing exemptions in state law. —Richard Ramos, CBS News, 17 Nov. 2025

Critics say the mayor commissioned the project without public notice or City Council approval. —Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 16 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English maire, from Anglo-French, from Latin major greater — more at major

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for mayor

• gayer
• grayer
• greyer
• layer
• nayar
• payer
• payor
• peyer
• player
• preyer
• sayer
• slayer

Kids Definition

mayor

noun

may·​or ˈmā-ər  ˈme(-)ər 

: an official elected to act as head of a city or borough

mayoral

ˈmā-ə-rəl  ˈme- ə- 

adjective

Legal Definition

mayor

noun

may·​or ˈmā-ər, ˈmer 

: an official elected or appointed to act as chief executive or nominal head of a city, town, or borough