as in leader
the person (as an employer or supervisor) who tells people and especially workers what to do
as headman at the newspaper 20 years ago, he hired the then-promising young reporter who won this year's Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting
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Recent Examples of headman
The New York Giants were the first team to have a head coach non-vacancy, with former Baltimore Ravens headman John Harbaugh taking his services to the Big Apple.
—
Jim Reineking, USA Today, 16 Jan. 2026
The child’s uncle, Salim Güran — the village headman — had been arrested earlier in the probe, per Hürriyet Daily News.
—Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 6 Sep. 2025
For whatever reason, contract talks fell through leaving the NFL’s most prestigious franchise without a headman to begin their offseason.
—Kambui Bomani, Forbes, 13 Jan. 2025
Jon Merrill came on for Bogosian and got caught flat-footed when Manson hit a headman pass to the blue line for O’Connor.
—Michael Russo, The Athletic, 9 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for headman
Jim Reineking, USA Today, 16 Jan. 2026
The child’s uncle, Salim Güran — the village headman — had been arrested earlier in the probe, per Hürriyet Daily News.
—Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 6 Sep. 2025
For whatever reason, contract talks fell through leaving the NFL’s most prestigious franchise without a headman to begin their offseason.
—Kambui Bomani, Forbes, 13 Jan. 2025
Jon Merrill came on for Bogosian and got caught flat-footed when Manson hit a headman pass to the blue line for O’Connor.
—Michael Russo, The Athletic, 9 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for headman
Recent Examples of Synonyms for headman
Noun
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The detentions come after a handful of other arrests months earlier, but Fúnez has long been pinpointed by local environmental and religious leaders as the man who spearheaded the assassination.—
Marlon González,
Los Angeles Times,
13 May 2026
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Unlike other Western leaders—and the foreign-policy establishment in Washington—Sánchez sees China in more pragmatic terms rather than as necessarily a strategic rival.—
Ishaan Tharoor,
New Yorker,
13 May 2026
Noun
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Lee is the jury foreman, who goes flying with the rest of the group when Banner transforms into the Hulk while testifying.—
Angela Andaloro,
PEOPLE,
7 May 2026
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Mentorship opens unexpected doors The shop foreman at Sam Pack encouraged him to take advantage of industry certification opportunities at Dallas College while also pursuing a degree.—
Robbie Owens,
CBS News,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
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In his first title race against Manchester City, there was a reluctance from the Arsenal boss to make changes at key moments that sapped momentum away from his side.—
Art de Roché,
New York Times,
13 May 2026
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As Jones informed Moore of the selection, the 6-foot-3, 198-pound outside corner made a bold proclamation to his new boss.—
Nick Harris,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 May 2026
Noun
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BuzzFeed founder and current chief Jonah Peretti will transition to a new role as president of BuzzFeed AI.—
Meg James,
Los Angeles Times,
12 May 2026
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Cara Sylvester, Target's merchandising chief, told CNBC that families with children visit stores twice as much as the average shopper.—
Alex Harring,
CNBC,
11 May 2026
Noun
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England, in theory, have players who can offer a decent facsimile of this (Elliot Anderson and Ezri Konsa, in particular), but Tuchel seems inclined to build his England squad around striker and captain Harry Kane over anyone else.—
The Athletic UK Staff,
New York Times,
13 May 2026
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Up to 50 passengers showed symptoms consistent with acute digestive infection after the ship’s captain alerted French authorities on Tuesday evening, the statement said.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
13 May 2026
Noun
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Brown holds a bachelor’s degree in animal sciences from Mississippi State University and a master’s degree in business from Louisiana State University Shreveport.—
Steven Walker,
The Orlando Sentinel,
12 May 2026
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The university will also suspend new admission into the bachelor of arts in anthropology and the masters of engineering and masters of science in materials science and engineering to rework curriculum through an interdisciplinary lens.—
Maven Navarro,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 May 2026
Noun
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So McCarthy slid into the DMs (direct messages) of Artemis 2 commander and NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman.—
Josh Dinner,
Space.com,
9 May 2026
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Christopher Cann Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday said in a public address that a strike on the Lebanese capital of Beirut killed a high-ranking Hezbollah commander.—
Michael Loria,
USA Today,
8 May 2026
Noun
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In the meantime, Chisholm’s teammates and manager expressed confidence in his ability to turn things around with plenty of baseball left to play.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
12 May 2026
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Guardians manager Stephen Vogt missed his second straight game because of a viral infection but is expected to be back in the dugout Tuesday night.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
12 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Headman.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/headman. Accessed 15 May. 2026.
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