president

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

|Updated on: 20 Jun 2018

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 \ˌpre-zə-ˈden(t)-sh(ə-)lē, ˌprez-ˈden(t)-\ 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

While Trump has sought to impose tariffs on goods that could complicate China’s attempts to become a leader in the tech space, the Middle Kingdom has been pressuring parts of the U.S. president’s voter base—namely, the farming community.

— lucinda shen, Fortune, "Dow Slips 200 Points, Soybean Prices Fall, and Bonds Gain as Trump Slaps 25% Tariff on China," 15 June 2018
After Ben Franklin’s founding efforts and 278 years, a Penn graduate was finally elected U.S. president.

— WSJ, "It’s Past Time for Real College Board Reform," 15 June 2018
The picture came after Trump and Kim met face-to-face for a historic first meeting on Tuesday morning in Singapore, late Monday night in the U.S, marking the first time that a sitting U.S. president and a North Korean leader have met.

— ale russian, PEOPLE.com, "Jim Carrey Creates Controversial Artwork for Trump's Birthday, Showing Boy Urinating on a '45' Grave," 15 June 2018
Whatever there is left of it, of course, for a U.S. president who lavishes high praise on Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong Un, and a laundry list of cruel strongmen around the world.

— fabiola santiago, miamiherald, "Trump is deporting Venezuelans to dictator Nicolás Maduro’s hell. This is why.," 14 June 2018
The children are given classes on U.S. history, and there are murals of U.S. presidents throughout the building.

— margaret hartmann, Daily Intelligencer, "Reporter: Migrant Children ‘Incarcerated’ in Texas Facility," 14 June 2018
Few were more wrong than former U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati.

— martin rogers, USA TODAY, "Give Trump credit for USA getting the World Cup," 13 June 2018
The recent exodus of former D.C. Entertainment president Geoff Johns, who has since been replaced by Walter Hamada, was a telling precursor to the beginning of the end for Affleck’s turn as Batman.

— yohana desta, HWD, "Ben Affleck’s Batman Journey Has Reportedly Come to an End," 13 June 2018
If the Trump administration fails to take this opportunity, there is a real risk that Kim will pocket his meeting with the U.S. president as a political win and drag his feet on further steps to halt and roll back his nuclear and missile programs.

— kelsey davenport, Time, "This Is What Trump Needs to Do to Make North Korea Get Rid of Their Nukes," 13 June 2018

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

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

president Synonyms

Synonyms

chair, chairman, chairperson, moderator, presider, 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

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

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

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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