1
as in main
coming before all others in importance
our chief priority this year will be cutting the budget
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in presiding
highest in rank or authority
the chief administrator will be retiring soon
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in body
the main or greater part of something as distinguished from its subordinate parts
the chief of the estate was left to the eldest son
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in leader
the person (as an employer or supervisor) who tells people and especially workers what to do
our chief is out on a business trip right now
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of chief
Ted Johnson, Deadline, 2 June 2026
Delrahim joined as Paramount’s chief legal counsel in October 2025.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 2 June 2026
Tim Spiers, New York Times, 1 June 2026
Read the full Fortune feature to see how these finance chiefs are navigating one of the most consequential capital cycles in tech history.
—Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 1 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for chief
Adjective
Anchor and chief data reporter Ali Velshi will break down the results.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 2 June 2026
Delrahim joined as Paramount’s chief legal counsel in October 2025.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 2 June 2026
Noun
Away from the press conference, Akbar Yusupov, editor-in-chief at the English-language newspaper The Tashkent Times, said there was strong support for Cannavaro but also expectations of doing well at the World Cup.
—Tim Spiers, New York Times, 1 June 2026
Read the full Fortune feature to see how these finance chiefs are navigating one of the most consequential capital cycles in tech history.
—Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 1 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for chief
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chief
Adjective
-
Kevin Cook, the venue’s main host and inarguably the reigning queen of drag in Portland.—
Arati Menon,
Condé Nast Traveler,
7 June 2026
-
Pashinyan’s main rival is the Strong Armenia Party, which wants closer business ties with Russia and accuses Pashinyan of attempting to spark a war with Moscow.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 June 2026
Noun
-
Common symptoms include a fever, chills, fatigue, headache, body aches, chest tightness, coughing, shortness of breath and airway irritation.—
Ryan Brennan
June 2,
Sacbee.com,
3 June 2026
-
Treatments range from Chinese-inspired, correcting the flow of qi within the body, to Ayurvedic, rooted in India’s most ancient healing science.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
3 June 2026
Noun
-
The playoff leader in goals, Howden had a beautiful tip on a shot by Theodore for his 11th of the playoffs and perhaps his most important in Game 1.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
3 June 2026
-
In 1940, French President General Charles de Gaulle checked in to conduct war meetings with US and British leaders.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
3 June 2026
Adjective
-
Silverman, who leads one of the world’s foremost corporate investigations and risk advisory firms, calls that a category error.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
1 June 2026
-
Karen Martin, a professor of biology at Pepperdine University and foremost expert on the creatures, will be in attendance, as will retired State Parks ranger Jim Serpa, who ran the program for three decades and helped resurrect it a few years ago.—
Laylan Connelly,
Oc Register,
1 June 2026
Noun
-
While the run business resonated with shoppers, the company’s campaign for its core yoga product didn’t live up to expectations.—
Evan Clark,
Footwear News,
4 June 2026
-
Other major areas in the district include Galt, Elk Grove and several capital region neighborhoods including Campus Commons, Oak Park, south Sacramento and the city’s downtown core.—
Mathew Miranda
June 4,
Sacbee.com,
4 June 2026
Noun
-
Assuming, of course, those staffers don’t emulate Pelley and strongly and sharply disagree or challenge their boss in an internal staff meeting.—
Josef Adalian,
Vulture,
3 June 2026
-
The space includes table football, board and video games, and staff can arrange certain special activities of which the parents of the youngsters involved might be more than a little jealous, among them sushi masterclasses with Mitsuru Tsukada, the boss of Izumi.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 June 2026
Adjective
-
California will have to wait before knowing the final outcome of the June 2 gubernatorial primary election as the country’s most populous state continues counting ballots.—
Phillip M. Bailey,
USA Today,
5 June 2026
-
Millions of Californians filled out their 2026 primary election ballots over the last several weeks either at home or at the polls, expressing their constitutional right to vote in a free and fair election.—
Austin Turner,
CBS News,
4 June 2026
Adjective
-
Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento took a commanding lead in the race for the District 2 seat on the OC Board of Supervisors as results were released following the close of polls Tuesday night.—
Claire Wang,
Oc Register,
3 June 2026
-
Ellis is the commanding general of the 4th Infantry Division and Fort Carson in Colorado.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
28 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Chief.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chief. Accessed 8 Jun. 2026.
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