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A relic of the large U.S. presence in Japan in the years following World War II, the word honcho comes from the Japanese word hanchō meaning “leader of the squad, section, group.” We are uncertain of the exact route by which honcho found its way into American military argot in the mid-1950s, though it is known that the Japanese applied hanchō to British or Australian officers in charge of work parties in prisoner-of-war camps. By the 1960s, the word had become part of colloquial American jargon.
Examples of honcho in a Sentence
the office was all abuzz because some honchos from corporate headquarters were coming for a visit
he's definitely the head honcho in that company
Recent Examples on the Web
To solve the murder of Treasury Department honcho Raymond King (J.K. Simmons, getting out while the getting is good) our fabled, antisocial hero forges an uneasy allegiance of convenience with the dead man’s protégé, Marybeth (Cynthia Addai-Robinson).
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A.a. Dowd, Rolling Stone, 25 Apr. 2025
The Taylor Gang honcho is on the road in support of his Kush + Orange Juice 2 sequel album, which arrived on Friday (April 18).
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 18 Apr. 2025
Hedge fund honcho Bill Ackman joined a growing list of President Donald Trump's billionaire backers calling for the White House to slam the brakes on tariffs just hours before Trump authorized a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs for most countries that went into effect Wednesday morning.
—Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 9 Apr. 2025
Continue reading … BIDEN'S BORDER – NY Times honcho details just how unpopular Biden's immigration policies were.
—Fox News, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for honcho
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A.a. Dowd, Rolling Stone, 25 Apr. 2025
The Taylor Gang honcho is on the road in support of his Kush + Orange Juice 2 sequel album, which arrived on Friday (April 18).
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 18 Apr. 2025
Hedge fund honcho Bill Ackman joined a growing list of President Donald Trump's billionaire backers calling for the White House to slam the brakes on tariffs just hours before Trump authorized a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs for most countries that went into effect Wednesday morning.
—Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 9 Apr. 2025
Continue reading … BIDEN'S BORDER – NY Times honcho details just how unpopular Biden's immigration policies were.
—Fox News, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for honcho
Cite this Entry
“Honcho.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/honcho. Accessed 11 May. 2025.
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