Added 3 October 2026
chief
/t͡ʃiːf/ noun
In Latin: prīnceps, praepositus, procer Wiktionary
noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about chief at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
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The leader or head of a tribe, organisation, business unit, or other group. .mw-parser-output .defdate{font-size:smaller}
All firefighters report to the fire chief.
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Headship, the status of being a chief or leader.
Bob is our troubleshooter in chief.
- The top part of a shield or escutcheon; more specifically, an ordinary consisting of the upper part of the field cut off by a horizontal line, generally occupying the top third.
adjective
verb
Origin
Inherited from Middle English chef, borrowed from Old French chief, from Vulgar Latin capus, from Latin caput, from Proto-Italic *kaput, from Proto-Indo-European *káput, from *kap-, possibly from *kap-, possibly borrowed from a substrate language. Doublet of cape (“point of land”), capo, caput, and chef through Latin (possibly also related to cape (“sleeveless garment”) and cap (“head covering”) from Latin cappa); doublet of head and Howth through Proto-Indo-European.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)