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

And frankly, Bennet does not have the executive experience (maybe being Hickenlooper’s chief of staff while mayor). —Dp Opinion, Denver Post, 24 Nov. 2025

The legal expert weighed in on the unexpectedly friendly meeting between New York City’s mayor-elect and the president on Monday’s episode of The View. —Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 24 Nov. 2025

No mayor since the consolidation has been able to speak the language of eastern Greenland. —Ben Taub, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025

However, Wu’s four-day visit to Halifax is the first time a Boston mayor went to Halifax to attend and partake in the tree cutting, rather than just accepting its Boston arrival. —Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 24 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