1
as in main
coming before all others in importance
our chief priority this year will be cutting the budget
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in presiding
highest in rank or authority
the chief administrator will be retiring soon
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in body
the main or greater part of something as distinguished from its subordinate parts
the chief of the estate was left to the eldest son
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in leader
the person (as an employer or supervisor) who tells people and especially workers what to do
our chief is out on a business trip right now
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of chief
News Desk, Artforum, 10 Mar. 2026
Under Murati, a tech executive who previously served as chief technology officer at OpenAI, Thinking Machines hired dozens of employees from the ChatGPT maker and rolled out its first product, Tinker, in October.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 10 Mar. 2026
Jack Queen, USA Today, 9 Mar. 2026
Hal Woods, chief of policy at Kids First Chicago, also pointed to the money already pouring into November’s school board races.
—Kate Armanini, Chicago Tribune, 9 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for chief
Adjective
Kadan, who lives and works in Kyiv, is known for paintings and installations reckoning with history, memory, and trauma; Sielewicz is chief curator of the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw and the curator of the Estonian pavilion at this year’s Venice Biennale.
—News Desk, Artforum, 10 Mar. 2026
Under Murati, a tech executive who previously served as chief technology officer at OpenAI, Thinking Machines hired dozens of employees from the ChatGPT maker and rolled out its first product, Tinker, in October.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 10 Mar. 2026
Noun
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth designated Anthropic after the startup refused to remove guardrails against using its AI for autonomous weapons or domestic surveillance.
—Jack Queen, USA Today, 9 Mar. 2026
Hal Woods, chief of policy at Kids First Chicago, also pointed to the money already pouring into November’s school board races.
—Kate Armanini, Chicago Tribune, 9 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for chief
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chief
Adjective
-
The district’s major facilities overhaul is set to bring freshman students back into Neuqua’s main building starting in 2027, which will free up Birkett to house a number of district programs.—
Molly Morrow,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Mar. 2026
-
Hitting this target should be your main priority in the months ahead.—
Christine Benz,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The last of three men linked to the May 2023 slaying of a Little Rock man whose body was found in some bushes has been sentenced to eight years in prison.—
John Lynch,
Arkansas Online,
11 Mar. 2026
-
Brad Marchand and Sam Reinhart did not play Tuesday, with Marchand out long-term and possibly for the rest of the season with the possibility of surgery for a lower-body injury being determined this week.—
Jordan McPherson,
Miami Herald,
11 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The conflict was sparked by Hezbollah targeting Israel after the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, breaking a 2024 ceasefire that in any case had largely failed.—
Prashant Rao,
semafor.com,
11 Mar. 2026
-
Now that local leaders have cleared the way, CoreCivic can begin accepting detainees under its $60 million-a-year contract with ICE.—
Matthew Kelly,
Kansas City Star,
11 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Daniel Yergin, one of the world’s foremost energy experts, notes how China has become resilient in a different way, by pouring oil into storage for a rainy day.—
Alaa Shahine Salha,
semafor.com,
11 Mar. 2026
-
Over the course of less than two decades, stop-motion animation house Laika has established itself as of one of the foremost makers of the beloved artform.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The team found a major levoglucosan peak centered around 1128 CE, coinciding with a similar peak recorded from the Schwarzboden mire peat core, another important reservoir of atmospheric history sampled about 12 miles southeast of Weißseespitze.—
Nidhi Sharma,
Popular Science,
13 Mar. 2026
-
That’s just core to my existence and my DNA.—
Claire Salinda,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Initially premiering at the Midnight Screening at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, Gangster Cop Devil tells of a police officer and a crime boss who reluctantly team-up to track down a serial killer.—
Borys Kit,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Mar. 2026
-
David will play his boss, Garner Taggert, who runs the Garner Taggart PI Agency where his son Mitch and Mickey are the main PIs.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Mesa County Clerk and Colorado Republican candidate for secretary of state Tina Peters reacts to early election returns during a primary night watch party at the Wide Open Saloon on June 28, 2022, in Sedalia, Colorado.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
13 Mar. 2026
-
Senior Republicans under pressure from conservative activists and GOP primary challengers are starting to take notice.—
W. James Antle III,
The Washington Examiner,
13 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Republicans have a less commanding lead, 52-44, among Catholics.—
John C. Moritz,
Austin American Statesman,
11 Mar. 2026
-
He's gone from about halfway down the list in the betting odds to having a pretty commanding lead over Johnson in Atlanta.—
Zach Harper,
New York Times,
5 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Chief.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chief. Accessed 13 Mar. 2026.
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