honcho

noun

hon·cho ˈhän-(ˌ)chō

plural honchos

Synonyms of honcho next

: boss, big shot

also : hotshot sense 1

Did you know?

A relic of the large U.S. presence in Japan in the years following World War II, the word honcho comes from the Japanese word hanchō meaning “leader of the squad, section, group.” We are uncertain of the exact route by which honcho found its way into American military argot in the mid-1950s, though it is known that the Japanese applied hanchō to British or Australian officers in charge of work parties in prisoner-of-war camps. By the 1960s, the word had become part of colloquial American jargon.

Example Sentences

the office was all abuzz because some honchos from corporate headquarters were coming for a visit he's definitely the head honcho in that company

Recent Examples on the Web It’s earned him the faith and support of everyone from Playwrights Horizons honcho Ira Weitzman (Jonathan Marc Sherman) to no less a grizzled eminence than Stephen Sondheim (a pitch-perfect Bradley Whitford), whose influence can already be heard in some of the lyrics. —

Los Angeles Times, 12 Nov. 2021 Billboard honcho Paul Ackerman was so impressed that Stein was soon hired to write concert reviews for Billboard. —

George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Apr. 2023 In a groundbreaking move for the film-TV scene in the U.S. Hispanic, Latin America and Spain, ex-NBC Universal Telemundo honcho Marcos Santana is launching Mas Ros Media, a new venture with offices in Barcelona and Miami whose productions target gaming and esports communities and their families. —

John Hopewell, Variety, 17 Jan. 2023 Staying in touch with this new customer is a savvy move for an Italian honcho who has two children in their 30s, Pietro and Romeo, no grandchildren yet and an increasingly unrelatable lifestyle. —

Rory Satran, WSJ, 3 Dec. 2022 San Francisco Giants honcho Farhan Zaidi is Norman Dale. —

John Shea, San Francisco Chronicle, 15 Jan. 2023 This was on the mind of virtually everybody who happened upon Rangers’ honcho Chris Young as MLB kicked off its offseason on Election Day with the start of the GM meetings. —

Dallas News, 8 Nov. 2022 Houston’s death came just a few hours before she was set to perform as a surprise guest at the annual pre-Grammy Awards party hosted by legendary music industry honcho Clive Davis, who guided Houston’s career almost from its inception. —

San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Dec. 2022 Sylvie—the high-profile, no-nonsense, extremely French head honcho of Savoir Agency—always represents the ultra-luxurious, traditional Parisian woman. —

Bianca Betancourt, Harper's BAZAAR, 21 Dec. 2022 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'honcho.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.