HEADMAN Synonyms: 71 Similar and Opposite Words

headman

noun

Definition of headman

as in leader

the person (as an employer or supervisor) who tells people and especially workers what to do as headman at the newspaper 20 years ago, he hired the then-promising young reporter who won this year's Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting

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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 headman After Mattias Samuelsson checked Kaprizov off the puck and cleared the zone, Filip Gustavsson alertly gathered the puck and made a long headman pass to Kaprizov to catch some tired penalty killers changing. — Michael Russo, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2026 The New York Giants were the first team to have a head coach non-vacancy, with former Baltimore Ravens headman John Harbaugh taking his services to the Big Apple. — Jim Reineking, USA Today, 16 Jan. 2026 The child’s uncle, Salim Güran — the village headman — had been arrested earlier in the probe, per Hürriyet Daily News. — Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 6 Sep. 2025 Jerry Jones’ relationship with Colorado Buffaloes headman Deion Sanders is documented, but hiring Coach Prime may only be considered if the Cowboys pivot off of Prescott and draft Deion’s son Shedeur Sanders. — Kambui Bomani, Forbes, 13 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for headman

Recent Examples of Synonyms for headman

Noun

Fans, artists, and leaders across all industries are mourning the star whose relentless optimism, grace, and resilience was a shining light.

— Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 26 Aug. 2026
Burch, who wasn't known for being particularly close with her neighbors before, emerged as vocal leader—and a lightning rod for deal proponents.

— Noah Shachtman, Vanity Fair, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of leader

Noun

In the mechanical maintenance shop, five employees and the foreman escaped, but two were killed from exposure to the chemical, the report said.

— ABC News, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026
Corey Sooter, 44, a foreman for an electrical company working on the project, died on June 10.

— PJ Green, Kansas City Star, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of foreman

Noun

But will the new Fed boss keep investors guessing on the central bank’s rate path and his views on the Treasury’s intervention in the bond market?

— Leonie Kidd, CNBC, 28 Aug. 2026
The Rebels are likely to be favored when Golding hosts his former boss in Week 3.

— Edgar Thompson, The Orlando Sentinel, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of boss

Noun

On Sunday, Roman Goffman, the chief of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, met again with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani in Jordan to ease the latest tensions, according to the Syrian state news agency.

— Tal Shalev, CNN Money, 25 Aug. 2026
The pilots could not see the runway and were flying by instruments, Clint Johnson, the National Transportation Safety Board’s Alaska region chief, said Friday.

— Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of chief

Noun

During the surge, the most important of these turned out to be those founded during the upheaval that followed George Floyd’s murder, when residents gathered in nearby parks to organize block associations led by captains.

— Emily Witt, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
Each jet had three senior captains onboard, Airlink said, operating in the roles of a commander, a co-pilot and a safety officer.

— Michelle Gumede, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of captain

Noun

Related Articles Liberation of Flowers is debuting with three scents developed with master perfumer Christophe Laudamiel, who created Polo Blue for Ralph Lauren, Burberry London, Amber Absolute for Tom Ford, Thierry Mugler’s Aura and more.

— Kathryn Hopkins, Footwear News, 27 Aug. 2026
The service got its name from the original Mechanical Turk, an 18th century chess-playing robot that was actually controlled by a human chess master.

— Annie Palmer, CNBC, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of master

Noun

His name is Ernst Kaltenbrunner, an SS general who two weeks earlier was named commander-in-chief of all German forces in southern Europe.

— Danielle Parker, CBS News, 28 Aug. 2026
When the ethnic war in Bosnia started in 1992, Mladic became the commander of the Bosnian Serb troops and took control of large swaths of the country to form a Serb mini-state.

— Jovana Gec, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of commander

Noun

During a news conference Wednesday, general manager Brian Gutekunst was asked if the Packers would need to add another running back in the event Jacobs faced charges and got suspended.

— Steve Megargee, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2026
Brewers manager Pat Murphy had a discussion with third base umpire and crew chief Vic Carapazza in the third, when Misiorowski fell behind 2-0 on Francisco Alvarez following a walk to Morel.

— CBS News, CBS News, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of manager

Browse Nearby Words

headlong

headman

headmaster

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“Headman.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/headman. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of headman

noun

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