head

highest in rank or authority as head editor at the TV station for 17 years, he has hired and fired innumerable staff members Synonyms chief, commanding, first, foremost, high, lead, leading, preeminent, premier, presiding, primary, prime, principal, supereminent, supreme, top Related Words high-level, senior; controlling, directing, managing, officiating, overseeing, regnant, reigning, ruling, supervisory; main, major, paramount, predominant, predominate, sovereign (also sovran); ascendant (also ascendent), dominant, grand, superior, topmost, upmost, upper, uppermost Phrases in charge Near Antonyms ancillary, inferior, last, less, lesser, lower, lowly, second, secondary, subordinate, subsidiary; assistant, assisting, coadjutor, deputy, junior, under

1 the upper or front part of the body that contains the brain, the major sense organs, and the mouth I hit my head as I went through the low doorway Synonyms bean, block [slang], dome, mazard (or mazzard) [chiefly dialect], nob, noddle, noggin, noodle, nut [slang], pate, poll Related Words cranium, crown, scalp, skull; occiput

2 the place of leadership or command every year a different parent is placed at the head of the troop's cookie drive Synonyms chair, driver's seat, headship, helm, rein(s) Related Words chieftainship, commandership, directorship; forefront, lead, vanguard; captainship, chairmanship, deanship, dictatorship, generalship, governorship, kingship, mastership, mastery, premiership, presidency, presidentship, superintendency; dominance, dominion, jurisdiction, sovereignty (also sovranty), sway, upper hand; eminence, height, pedestal, pinnacle, seat, throne, top Near Antonyms ranks

3 a light mass of fine bubbles formed in or on a liquid the head on the ice cream soda rose a good two inches above the rim of the glass Synonyms froth, foam, lather, spume, suds, surfRelated Words mousse; mist, spindrift, spray; scum

4 a member of the human race the tour guide counted heads, and everyone was present Synonyms baby, being, bird, bod [British], body, character, cookie (or cooky), creature, customer, devil, duck, egg, face, fish, guy, human, human being, individual, life, man, mortal, party, person, personage, scout, slob, sort, soul, specimen, stiff, thing, wightRelated Words hominid, homo, humanoid; brother, fellow, fellowman, neighbor; celebrity, personality, self, somebodyNear Antonyms animal, beast, beastie, brute, critter

5 a time or state of affairs requiring prompt or decisive action the security issue came to a head when an employee was robbed in broad daylight in the company parking lot Synonyms boiling point, breaking point, clutch, conjuncture, crisis, crossroad(s), crunch, crunch time, Dunkirk, exigency, extremity, flash point, emergency, juncture, tinderbox, zero hourRelated Words contingency, possibility; climax, turning point; happening, landmark, milestone; condition, pass, situation, strait; deadlock, impasse, stalemate; corner, fix, hole, hot water, jam, last ditch, pinch, predicament, scrape, spot; eleventh hour, last minute

6 the beginning part of a stream Lake Itasca in Minnesota is the head of the Mississippi River Synonyms headwater, headstream, sourceRelated Words fountain, fountainhead, geyser, headspring, hot spring, spring, wellspring; branch, feeder, tributary

7 the highest part or point stood at the head of the stairs and looked down Synonyms acme, apex, apogee, capstone, climax, crescendo, crest, crown, culmination, height, high noon, high tide, high-water mark, meridian, ne plus ultra, noon, noontime, peak, pinnacle, sum, summit, tip-top, top, zenithRelated Words bloom, blossom, flood tide, flower, glory, heyday, prime; cap, ceiling, roof; extreme, extremity, tip, vertex; high, highlight, highspotNear Antonyms abyss, base, foot; minimumAntonyms bottom, nadir, rock bottom

8 the normal or healthy condition of the mental abilities you're out of your head if you think you can swim across that river Synonyms daylights, mind, marbles, reason, saneness, sanity, wit(s)Related Words rationality, reasonableness, sense; health, healthfulness, healthiness, wholesomeness; clearheadedness, lucidity, lucidness, normalcy, normality, soundness; wisdomNear Antonyms delusion, hallucination; delirium, frenzy, hysteriaAntonyms dementia, derangement, insanity, lunacy, madness, mania, unreason

9 the part of a person that feels, thinks, perceives, wills, and especially reasons challenged us to put our heads together and find a solution to the skyrocketing costs of the company's health insurance plans Synonyms brain, cerebrum, mind, psyche, thinkerRelated Words belfry, gray matter, intellect, intelligence, loaf [British slang], noodle, reason, skull; acumen, alertness, astuteness, brilliance, insight, judgment (or judgement), mentality, perception, perspicacity, sagacity, sapience, wisdom, wit; awareness, cognizance, consciousness, self-awareness, self-consciousness

10 the person (as an employer or supervisor) who tells people and especially workers what to do as head of the planning committee, he had the responsibility of appointing someone to look into the parking situation Synonyms boss man, captain, chief, foreman, boss, headman, helmsman, honcho, jefe, kingpin, leader, master, taskmasterRelated Words directress, mistress; administrator, commander, director, executive, general, governor, hierarch, higher-up; leadman, manager, overseer, principal, skipper, standard-bearer, steward, straw boss, superintendent, superior, supervisor; dominator, lord, overlord, potentate, ruler, sovereign (also sovran); figurehead; slave driver; baron, czar (also tsar or tzar), king, magnate, mogul, president, prince; big cheese, big gun, bigwig, top dog, top gun; cohead, coleader; employer, gaffer [British], ganger [British]; micromanager; subchief, subdirectorNear Antonyms dependent, inferior, junior, secondary, subject, subordinate, underling

11 a bank of earth constructed to control water built a head to create a millpond Synonyms dike, embankment, dam, leveeRelated Words breakwater, jetty, seawall; breastwork, bulwark, earthwork, rampart; canal, channel, ditch, gutter, trough; lock; barricade, barrier, block; floodgate, sluice; barrage, milldam, stank [British], weir

12 a room furnished with a fixture for flushing body waste give me a chance to visit the head, and I'll be all set to go Synonyms bath, bathroom, bog [British], can, cloakroom [British], comfort station, convenience [chiefly British], toilet, john, latrine, lavatory, loo [chiefly British], potty, restroom, washroom, water closetRelated Words commode, pan [British], pot; garderobe, jakes, outhouse, privy; half bath, powder room; ladies [chiefly British], ladies' room, men's room

13 a person who regularly uses drugs especially illegally a shop near campus where all the heads used to get their paraphernalia Synonyms addict, dopehead, druggie (also druggy), fiend, freak [slang], doper, hophead [slang], hype [slang], junkie (also junky), stoner, userRelated Words acidhead, cokehead, crackhead, pothead, speed freak; burnoutAntonyms nonaddict, nonuser

14 a person with a strong and habitual liking for something she's a total tech head who adores home electronics and computers Synonyms addict, aficionado (also afficionado), buff, bug, devotee, enthusiast, fanatic, fancier, fiend, fool, freak, habitué (also habitue), fan, hound, junkie (also junky), lover, maniac, maven (also mavin), nut, suckerRelated Words groupie; admirer, amateur, collector, connoisseur, dilettante; authority, expert; adherent, convert, cultist, disciple, follower, hanger-on, votary; advocate, apostle, backer, champion, evangelist, exponent, friend, patron, promoter, proponent, supporter; partisan (also partizan), zealot; booster, rooter, well-wisher; faddistNear Antonyms nonadmirer; belittler, carper, critic, detractorAntonyms nonfan

15 a word or series of words often in larger letters placed at the beginning of a passage or at the top of a page in order to introduce or categorize rechecked to make sure that all the heads were in boldface Synonyms caption, heading, header, headline, rubric, titleRelated Words banner, streamer; catch word, guide word, running head; greeting, salutation; superscript, superscription; subhead, subheading, subtitle

16 a special and usually inborn ability I have no head for numbers Synonyms aptitude, bent, endowment, faculty, flair, genius, gift, talent, knackRelated Words affinity, bias, disposition, habitude, impulse, inclination, leaning, partiality, penchant, predilection, predisposition, proclivity, propensity, tendency, turn; ear, eye, mind, nose; feel, hang, instinct, touch, way; capability, competence, facility, proficiency, skill; capacity, potential, power; forte, specialism, speciality, specialtyNear Antonyms disability, handicap, inability, incapacity; shortcoming, weakness

1 to go on a specified course or in a certain direction the migrant workers were heading for California for the grape harvest Synonyms bear, make Related Words aim, bend, direct, point, turn; beeline, light out, put, put out, set off, set out, strike, take off; face, orient, steer; about-face, back, come about, come round, cut, incline, put about, reverse, swerve, tack, turn back, veer, wheel, yaw

2 to be at the front of heading the procession at the dog show was a miniature poodle, followed by dogs seemingly of every breed Synonyms leadRelated Words precede; announce, herald; accompany, attend, escort, usherNear Antonyms conclude, end, finish, stop, terminate; tail, tailgate; dog, follow, trail

3 to be in charge of who headed the CIA when Ronald Reagan was president? Synonyms captain, handle, boss, overlook, oversee, quarterback, superintend, superviseRelated Words administer, command, control, direct, guide, manage, order, run, shepherd, show, steer; monitor, preside (over); govern, reign, rule

4 to be positioned along a certain course or in a certain direction the road to riches headed north, thought many, as off they went to Alaska to try their luck at panning gold Synonyms bear, extend, go, run, lead, lieRelated Words cross, cut, pass; course, follow, span, traverse

5 to point or turn (something) toward a target or goal after a long day at the beach, we headed the car toward home Synonyms bend, cast, direct, aim, hold, level, pinpoint, set, trainRelated Words sight; bear, face; concentrate, focus; incline, orient, steerNear Antonyms avert, curve, deflect, detour, divert, rechannel, shunt, sidetrack

6 to serve as leader of Robert La Salle headed the expedition that claimed Louisiana for the French king Synonyms boss, captain, command, lead, spearheadRelated Words control, dominate; direct, govern, handle, manage, oversee, regulate, run, superintend, superviseNear Antonyms bow (to), comply (with), defer (to), follow, obey, serve, submit (to), yield (to)

7 to cut off the head of got a job at the slaughterhouse heading cattle Synonyms behead, guillotine, decapitateRelated Words decollate; prune, shorten, trim; scalp