titular

1 of 2

adjective

tit·​u·​lar ˈti-chə-lər 

ˈtich-lər

1

a

: having the title and usually the honors belonging to an office or dignity without the duties, functions, or responsibilities

the titular head of a political party

b

: existing in title only

especially : bearing a title derived from a defunct ecclesiastical jurisdiction (such as an episcopal see)

a titular bishop

2

: of, relating to, or constituting a title

the titular hero of the play

3

: bearing a title : titled

titularly adverb

titular

2 of 2

noun

: a person holding a title

Synonyms of titular

Adjective

• nominal

Examples of titular in a Sentence

Adjective

Although retired, he remains the titular chairman of the company.

he's the titular head of the department, though it's the assistant managers who largely run things around here

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Davidson is wearing a wig of epic proportions along with what appears to be some facial prosthetics for the movie, which will turn him into the titular character. — Shelby Stivale, Entertainment Weekly, 23 July 2026

For those who have yet to enter the crawl, Donut is a tiara-wearing talking cat who belonged to the titular Carl’s ex-girlfriend, Beatrice. — Jennifer Maas, Variety, 23 July 2026

Among the most intriguing projects debuting within the category is Alex Gibney’s Musk, tracing the life of the titular SpaceX founder and trillionaire in an almost four-hour film. — Rachel Raposas, PEOPLE, 23 July 2026

The movie, which starred Jackson’s nephew Jaafar Jackson in the titular role, has in some quarters been accused of being sanitized, which Peters said in some senses helped the doc act as a companion piece. — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 22 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Latin titulus title

First Known Use

Adjective

1591, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1540, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for titular

• capitular

Kids Definition

titular

adjective

tit·​u·​lar

ˈtich-(ə-)lər

: being something in title only : nominal

the titular head of state

titularly adverb