kingmaker

noun

king·​mak·​er ˈkiŋ-ˌmā-kər 

: one having great influence over the choice of candidates for political office

Examples of kingmaker in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The big picture: Dougherty had been a political kingmaker in Philadelphia and state politics for decades before getting indicted in 2019. —Mike D'onofrio, Axios, 11 July 2024

There’s no question the Covid pandemic made kingmakers out of many manufacturers that play in the outdoor cooking space. —Tim Clark, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 2025

Tesla automobiles, dealerships and charging stations around the world have been vandalized — or worse — as the company’s CEO has positioned himself as a right-wing kingmaker in recent months. —Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 20 Mar. 2025

Vendors with access to domain-specific private data will become the kingmakers for developing agentic workflows and applications. —Shailesh Manjrekar, Forbes, 21 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1595, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for kingmaker

• blackacre
• caretaker
• clockmaker
• dressmaker
• filmmaker
• homemaker
• icebreaker
• lawmaker
• matchmaker
• pacemaker
• partaker
• peacemaker