1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

kingpin

noun

ˈkiŋ-ˌpin How to pronounce kingpin (audio)
Definition of kingpinnext
1
as in heavyweight
one of high position or importance within a group a police sting that nabbed several kingpins of the city's drug trade

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in leader
the person (as an employer or supervisor) who tells people and especially workers what to do finally nailed the mob kingpin who had been controlling all the gambling rackets in the city

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of kingpin Beneath his smooth and calm outward behavior, Gus Fring (Giancarlo Esposito) is a calculated drug kingpin who will stop at nothing to stay on top. — Kevin Jacobsen, Entertainment Weekly, 2 Sep. 2026 In the Guy Ritchie crime drama, Winstone plays kingpin Bobby Glass. — Jack Dunn, Variety, 29 Aug. 2026 Rex plays Landry Taylor, the ruthless kingpin who controls the film’s bodybuilding world. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 25 Aug. 2026 Directed by Potsy Ponciroli, the film features Ritchson as John Miller, a 1970s Detroit factory worker framed for drugs by a crime kingpin after falling for his ex-girlfriend. — Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for kingpin
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kingpin
  1. heavyweight
  2. leader
  3. heavy
  4. boss
  5. big
  6. foreman
  7. magnate
  8. master
Noun
  • Chip heavyweight Nvidia is rolling out a new software platform that allows AI developers to set safeguards for agents to prevent them from misbehaving.
    — Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Sporting a cowboy hat, grill and goatee, Cho makes for a menacing villain who more than holds his own against the heavyweight Ali.
    — Marlow Stern, Variety, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of heavyweight
Noun
  • The United States remains the global leader in biotech, but China is rapidly narrowing the gap.
    — Patrick McHenry, STAT, 30 Sep. 2026
  • Some industry leaders have also sounded alarms over increasingly powerful systems.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of leader
Noun
  • That much was clear Saturday at the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art’s opening-night soiree, where the guest list was as celebrity-heavy as any Academy Awards after-party.
    — Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Trapped together in the heavy, stifling isolation of the summer heat, the siblings’ bond begins to shift into something unsettling and difficult to define.
    — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of heavy
Noun
  • Earlier in my career, if my boss asked me for something, my instinct was to stay late and finish it immediately.
    — John Abusaid, Forbes.com, 25 Sep. 2026
  • The script has been ordered by a studio run by a coterie of women, with Mira Sorvino (in one of many cameos) playing the crazy boss, until they’re all replaced by a bunch of men and their crazy boss.
    — Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of boss
Noun
  • Polish superstar Robert Lewandowski joining the Chicago Fire has been a big to Woznik, who is just as likely to groove to the great romantic 19th century Polish composer Frederic Chopin.
    — Patrick Z. McGavin, Chicago Tribune, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Unfortunately, the less said about China’s guards, the better; their main job is to get the ball past half court without turning it over and then feed the bigs.
    — Sabreena Merchant, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of big
Noun
  • Rooms in the back of the second and third floors had mahogany window frames that peered into the main space, allowing a foreman to supervise workers.
    — Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 11 Sep. 2026
  • The Nepal Electricity Authority named the two men who were rescued alive as 30-year-old Sanjay Sah, a mechanical foreman from Saptari district in eastern Nepal, and Kabir Maharjan, 45, a mechanical supervisor from Kathmandu.
    — Bhadra Sharma, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of foreman
Noun
  • The shipping magnate led Hong Kong from 1997 to 2005, steering it through the Asian financial crisis, deadly SARS outbreak and massive protests over a controversial anti-treason law.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 21 Sep. 2026
  • The President, who likes his steak well done and slathered in ketchup, met with a Brazilian beef magnate named Joesley Batista, who in the past had admitted to making large payments to public officials and was briefly jailed.
    — Bill McKibben, New Yorker, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of magnate
Noun
  • The university’s clinical mental health counseling master’s program has expanded to Charlotte, and Charlotte’s first graduate physician assistant program will welcome its inaugural class in January, officials said.
    — Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Billiter holds a master’s degree in public safety leadership and executive management from Arizona State University and a bachelor’s degree in emergency services management from Union Institute and University.
    — Nicole Buss, Sacbee.com, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of master

Browse Nearby Words

kingly
kingpin
kingpins
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Kingpin.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kingpin. Accessed 30 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of epistemic

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of the words cracker fly and sale arranged in a triangle with the word fire in the middle
Triple Play Quiz Find the word that pairs with each of the three g...
See All