president

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noun pres·i·dent \ ˈpre-zə-dənt , ˈprez-dənt , ˈpre-zə-ˌdent , in rapid speech ˈpre-zᵊnt \

Definition of president

1 :an official chosen to preside over a meeting or assembly

2 :an appointed governor of a subordinate political unit

3 :the chief officer of an organization (such as a corporation or institution) usually entrusted with the direction and administration of its policies

4 :the presiding officer of a governmental body

5 a :an elected official serving as both chief of state and chief political executive in a republic having a presidential government

b :an elected official having the position of chief of state but usually only minimal political powers in a republic having a parliamentary government

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presidential

play \ˌpre-zə-ˈden(t)-shəl, ˌprez-ˈden(t)-\ adjective

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presidentially

play \-sh(ə-)lē\ adverb

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presidentship

play \ˈpre-zə-dənt-ˌship, ˈprez-dənt-, ˈpre-zə-ˌdent-\ noun

See president defined for English-language learners

See president defined for kids

Examples of president in a Sentence

The President will hold a news conference tomorrow.
the president of the international conference on genocide

Recent Examples of president from the Web

The president’s speech was light on details, offering little insight into what his administration wants out of a final tax package.

— katie robertson, Bloomberg.com, "Your Evening Briefing," 30 Aug. 2017
The event was organized by Cathy Hrenda, head of the Adams Hill Neighborhood Assn., and Stephen Meek, the association’s vice president.

— ruth sowby, Glendale News-Press, "On the Town: Bingo night sells out, raises funds for veterans’ programs," 29 Aug. 2017
Mount Pleasant Village Board president Dave DeGroot wasn't available for an interview.

— jason stein, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Without fix, Wisconsin Foxconn deal could mean higher taxes for local homeowners," 28 Aug. 2017
This is the second lawsuit to be filed over the ban — earlier this month, two LGBTQ legal organizations sued the president on behalf of five different trans service members.

— claire landsbaum, The Cut, "The ACLU Is Suing the Trump Administration Over Its Ban on Transgender Troops," 28 Aug. 2017
Sooner or later, and the later the better, the president’s wandering attention will flit, however briefly, to the subject of trade.

— george will, National Review, "Trump, the Novice Protectionist," 26 Aug. 2017
Every president since the '70s has proclaimed the holiday each year, so to some degree his announcement was expected.

— krystin arneson, Glamour, "Donald Trump Declared Saturday Women's Equality Day—But Didn't Quite Get It Right," 26 Aug. 2017
Critics say the act has been misused by Presidents to designate bigger areas than are necessary.

— TIME.com, "Inside the bitter clash over public space and private rights," 25 Aug. 2017
The program kicked off with Ariella Bengio and Avi Muller, presidents of the KYHS Student Council, making opening remarks.

— randall p. lieberman, Jewish Journal, "Yeshiva High School celebrates new facility's opening," 25 Aug. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'president.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of president

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin praesident-, praesidens, from present participle of praesidēre

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

president Synonyms

Synonyms

chairman, chairperson, moderator, chair, presider, prolocutor, speaker

Related Words

chairwoman; cochair, cochairman, cochairperson, cochairwoman, copresident

Other Government and Politics Terms

agent provocateur, agitprop, autarky, cabal, egalitarianism, federalism, hegemony, plenipotentiary, popular sovereignty, socialism

PRESIDENT Defined for English Language Learners

president

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noun

Definition of president for English Language Learners

: the head of the government in some countries
: someone who has the highest position in an organization or business

PRESIDENT Defined for Kids

president

play

noun pres·i·dent \ ˈpre-zə-dənt \

Definition of president for Students

1 :the head of the government and chief executive officer of a modern republic

2 :the chief officer of a company, organization, or society

a bank president

a college president

Law Dictionary

president

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noun, often capitalized pres·i·dent \ ˈpre-zə-dənt, -ˌdent \

legal Definition of president

1 :an official chosen to preside over a meeting or assembly

2 :an appointed governor of a subordinate political unit

3 :the chief officer of an organization (as a corporation or institution) usually entrusted with the direction and administration of its policies

4 :the presiding officer of a governmental body

the Vice President of the United States shall be President of the Senate
—U.S. Constitution art. I

5 a :an elected official serving as both chief of state and chief political executive in a republic having a presidential government

b :an elected official having the position of chief of state but usually only minimal political powers in a republic having a parliamentary government

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