ˈhī-(ə-)ˌrär-kē
as in ladder
a scheme of rank or order
honesty sits at the top of my hierarchy of values
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Recent Examples of hierarchy
The global hierarchy of innovation is undergoing a structural shift that Washington is dangerously slow to acknowledge.
—
Imran Khalid, Twin Cities, 7 May 2026
In the hierarchy of food costs, rice, dry ramen and veggies constitute some of the highest profit, highest margin items.
—Charlotte Observer, 7 May 2026
The story centers on a unit of nine soldiers – drawn from across the military hierarchy – dispatched to Tsushima Island to bring home Koreans taken prisoner by Japanese pirate groups.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 6 May 2026
And yet, as one of the parties in the Heat hierarchy privately expressed recently, the view is that this could be the Summer of 2019 all over again, when the Heat exited from the lottery with Tyler Herro as the draft pick and exited free agency with Butler.
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 4 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for hierarchy
Imran Khalid, Twin Cities, 7 May 2026
In the hierarchy of food costs, rice, dry ramen and veggies constitute some of the highest profit, highest margin items.
—Charlotte Observer, 7 May 2026
The story centers on a unit of nine soldiers – drawn from across the military hierarchy – dispatched to Tsushima Island to bring home Koreans taken prisoner by Japanese pirate groups.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 6 May 2026
And yet, as one of the parties in the Heat hierarchy privately expressed recently, the view is that this could be the Summer of 2019 all over again, when the Heat exited from the lottery with Tyler Herro as the draft pick and exited free agency with Butler.
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 4 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for hierarchy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hierarchy
Noun
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Charlotte Fire responded with four engine companies and the two ladder companies.—
Joe Marusak,
Charlotte Observer,
9 May 2026
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The man was given medical assistance by firefighters, but was unable to come down the ladder of the crane due to his condition, the Fire Department said in Facebook post.—
Maven Navarro,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
7 May 2026
Noun
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Novo’s share price has plunged by almost three quarters since its peak in 2024 and has slipped down the ranking of Europe’s most valuable companies.—
Anna Cooban,
CNN Money,
7 May 2026
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Under the previous system, management awarded the company as a whole a ranking for its yearly performance that set the total size of the bonus pool for business units.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
6 May 2026
Noun
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For decades, expansion followed a predictable structure in which rising revenue was accompanied by larger teams and additional layers of management to support scale.—
William Jones,
USA Today,
12 May 2026
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As trade policies have shifted the global trade landscape, Seroka highlighted that Vietnam’s growth as a sourcing hub has tilted the scales in pricing power, while also boosting the reliability of the Southeast Asian nation’s vendors.—
Glenn Taylor,
Footwear News,
12 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hierarchy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hierarchy. Accessed 15 May. 2026.
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