Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

President

Pres′i-dent

,
Noun.
Precedent.
[Obs.]
Bacon.

Pres′i-dent

,
Adj.
Occupying the first rank or chief place; having the highest authority; presiding.
[R.]
His angels
president

In every province.
Milton.

Pres′i-dent

,
Noun.
[F.
président
, L.
praesidens
,
-entis
, p. pr. of
praesidere
. See
Preside
.]
1.
One who is elected or appointed to preside; a presiding officer, as of a legislative body.
Specifically:
(a)
The chief officer of a corporation, company, institution, society, or the like.
(b)
The chief executive officer of the government in certain republics;
as, the
president
of the United States
.
2.
A protector; a guardian; a presiding genius.
[Obs.]
Just Apollo,
president
of verse.
Waller.

Webster 1828 Edition

President

PRES'IDENT

,
Noun.
[L. proesidens.]
1.
An officer elected or appointed to preside over a corporation, company or assembly of men, to keep order, manage their concerns or govern their proceedings; as the president of a banking company; the president of a senate, &c.
2.
An officer appointed or elected to govern a province or territory, or to administer the government of a nation. The president of the United States is the chief executive magistrate.
3.
The chief officer of a college or university.
4.
A tutelar power.
Just Apollo, president of verse.
Vice-president, one who is second in authority to the president. The vice-president of the United States is president of the senate ex officio, and performs the duties of president when the latter is removed or disabled.

Definition 2025

President

President

See also: president and président

English

Noun

President ‎(plural Presidents)

  1. An honorific for the head of state of a republic; see president (definition 1).
    the President of the United States

Usage notes

  • Used for anyone who has had the office of head of state, even if not currently in office.

president

president

See also: President and président

English

Alternative forms

Noun

president ‎(plural presidents)

  1. The head of state of a republic, a representative democracy and sometimes a dictatorship.
    • 2007, Benjamin Camins, Hillary Is the Best Choice, Page 144
      […] to change the pattern of the last 220 years of only voting for a white male president, and elect a woman president […]
    The vast majority of presidents have been male.
  2. Primary leader of a corporation. Not to be confused with CEO, which is a related but separate position that is sometimes held by a different person.
  3. A person presiding over a meeting, chair, presiding officer, presider.
  4. Obsolete form of precedent.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Francis Bacon to this entry?)

Synonyms

  • (American head of state): POTUS
  • (head of a college or university): provost (UK)
  • (head of various specific bodies): prepositus
  • (informal, jocular): prez

Translations

Adjective

president ‎(not comparable)

  1. (archaic) Occupying the first rank or chief place; having the highest authority; presiding.
    • Milton
      His angels president / In every province.

Catalan

Noun

president m ‎(plural presidents)

  1. president

Czech

Noun

president m

  1. Alternative spelling of prezident

Dutch

Pronunciation

  • Hyphenation: pre‧si‧dent
  • Rhymes: -ɛnt

Noun

president m ‎(plural presidenten, diminutive presidentje n)

  1. president

Derived terms

Ladin

Alternative forms

  • presidënt

Noun

president m ‎(plural presidenc)

  1. president

Middle French

Noun

president m (plural presidens)

  1. president (leader of an organization)

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Latin praesidens

Pronunciation

  • Hyphenation: pre‧si‧dent

Noun

president m ‎(definite singular presidenten, indefinite plural presidenter, definite plural presidentene)

  1. a president

Derived terms

References

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Latin praesidens

Noun

president m ‎(definite singular presidenten, indefinite plural presidentar, definite plural presidentane)

  1. a president

References

Spanish

Noun

president m ‎(plural presidents)

  1. president of Catalonia

Swedish

Pronunciation

Noun

president c

  1. a chairman, presiding member of an assembly, e.g. a court of law
  2. a president, head of state in a republic

Declension

Inflection of president 
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative president presidenten presidenter presidenterna
Genitive presidents presidentens presidenters presidenternas

Related terms

  • hovrättspresident
  • presidentbostad
  • presidentföredragning
  • presidenthustru
  • presidentkampanj
  • presidentkandidat
  • presidentmakt
  • presidentpalats
  • presidentperiod
  • presidentpost
  • presidentskap
  • presidentskifte
  • presidentstyre
  • presidentur
  • presidentval

References

Etymology

From Old French president, from Latin praesidēns ‎(“presiding over; president, leader”) (accusative: praesidentem). The Latin word is the substantivized present active participle of the verb praesideō ‎(“preside over”). The verb is composed from prae ‎(“before”) and sedeō ‎(“sit”). The original meaning of the verb is 'to sit before' in the sense of presiding at a meeting. A secondary meaning of the verb is 'to command, to govern'. So praesidēns means 'the presiding one on a meeting' or 'governor, commander'.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈpɹɛzɨdənt/
  • Hyphenation: pre‧si‧dent

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