president

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈprez.ɪ.dənt/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English president, borrowed from Old French president and directly from Latin praesidēns (“president, governor”) (stem praesident-),^[2][3][4] the noun use of the present participle of praesidēre (“to preside, govern, guard”),^[2][5][4] from prae (“before”) and sedēre (“to sit”).^[6][7] Merriam-Webster gives the route through Anglo-French.^[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

A person who presides, a chief officer: before 1382, in the Wycliffe Bible.^[3] In the late 14th century it also meant a ruler, especially one with judicial powers.^[2]

Semantic evolution

Middle English already used it for the heads of religious houses, hospitals, almshouses and colleges;^[2] the head of a college is a president from 1448.^[3][9] It also meant the governor of a province or colony.^[5] In America the chief officer of a colony was a president in Virginia in 1608,^[2][3] and the presiding officer of the Continental Congress in 1774.^[2][3] In their constitutions of 1776 Delaware, New Hampshire and South Carolina called their chief magistrates presidents, but later went back to governor.^[2] From the presiding officer the title passed to the chief executive of the republic in the Constitution of 1787,^[2][3] though Word Origins dates this sense to 1784.^[6] The head of a learned society has been a president since 1660,^[3] and of a bank since 1781.^[2][3] Presidency is from 1591,^[3] presidentess from 1763 and the slang prez from 1883.^[2]

Timeline

• before 1382 – one who presides (Wycliffe Bible).^[3]
• 1448 – head of a college.^[3][9]
• 1591 – presidency.^[3]
• 1608 – chief officer of an American colony.^[3][2]
• 1660 – head of a learned society.^[3]
• 1774 – presiding officer of the Continental Congress.^[3]
• 1781 – head of a bank.^[2][3]
• 1787 – chief executive of the United States.^[2][3]
• 1883 – prez.^[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A person chosen to preside over a meeting, assembly or organized body.
2. The chief executive of a republic, and in particular of the United States.
3. The chief officer of a corporation, university, board or similar body.
4. (historical) The governor of a province or colony.

Word family

• presidentship
• presidential
• presidentially
• ex-president
• president-elect
• president pro tempore
• president pro tem
• Presidents' Day

Related words

• preside
• presidency
• resident
• sedentary
• sit

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
4. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
7. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
8. ^ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
9. ^ a b Kay, Christian; Roberts, Jane; Samuels, Michael; Wotherspoon, Irené, eds. (2009), Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press; online edition (2024)