king

¹

[king]

noun

1. a male sovereign or monarch; a man who holds by life tenure, and usually by hereditary right, the chief authority over a country and people.

2. (initial capital letter),  God or Christ.

3. a person or thing preeminent in its class.

   a king of actors.

4. a playing card bearing a picture of a king.

5. Chess.,  the chief piece of each color, whose checkmating is the object of the game; moved one square at a time in any direction.

6. Checkers.,  a piece that has been moved entirely across the board and has been crowned, thus allowing it to be moved in any direction.

7. Entomology.,  a fertile male termite.

8. a word formerly used in communications to represent the letter K.

verb (used with object)

1. to make a king of; cause to be or become a king; crown.

2. Informal.,  to design or make (a product) king-size.

   The tobacco company is going to king its cigarettes.

verb (used without object)

1. to reign as king.

adjective

1. Informal.,  king-size.

verb phrase

1. king it,  to play the king; behave in an imperious or pretentious manner.

   He kinged it over all the other kids on the block.

King

²

[king]

noun

1. Billie Jean (Moffitt) born 1943, U.S. tennis player.

2. Clarence, 1842–1901, U.S. geologist and cartographer.

3. Coretta Scott 1927–2006, U.S. civil rights leader (widow of Martin Luther King, Jr.)

4. Ernest Joseph, 1878–1956, U.S. naval officer.

5. Martin Luther, Jr., MLK, 1929–68, U.S. Baptist minister: civil rights leader; Nobel Peace Prize 1964.

6. Maxine Micki, born 1944, U.S. springboard and platform diver.

7. Richard, 1825–85, U.S. rancher and steamboat operator.

8. Riley B. B.B., 1925–2015, U.S. blues singer and guitarist.

9. Rufus, 1755–1827, U.S. political leader and statesman.

10. Stephen, born 1947, U.S. novelist and short-story writer.

11. William Lyon Mackenzie, 1874–1950, Canadian statesman: prime minister 1921–26, 1926–30, 1935–48.

12. William Rufus DeVane 1786–1853, vice president of the U.S. 1853.

king

¹

/ kɪŋ /

noun

1. a male sovereign prince who is the official ruler of an independent state; monarch

2. 1. a ruler or chief

      king of the fairies

   2. ( in combination )

      the pirate king

3. 1. a person, animal, or thing considered as the best or most important of its kind

   2. ( as modifier )

      a king bull

4. any of four playing cards in a pack, one for each suit, bearing the picture of a king

5. the most important chess piece, although theoretically the weakest, being able to move only one square at a time in any direction See also check checkmate

6. draughts a piece that has moved entirely across the board and has been crowned, after which it may move backwards as well as forwards

7. 1. God

   2. a title of any of various oriental monarchs

verb

1. to make (someone) a king

2. to act in a superior fashion

King

²

/ kɪŋ /

noun

1. B.B., real name Riley B. King. born 1925, US blues singer and guitarist

2. Billie Jean (née Moffitt ). born 1943, US tennis player: winner of twelve Grand Slam singles titles, including Wimbledon (1966–68, 1972–73, and 1975) and the US Open (1967, 1971–72, and 1974)

3. Martin Luther. 1929–68, US Baptist minister and civil-rights leader. He advocated nonviolence in his campaigns against the segregation of Black people in the South: assassinated: Nobel Peace Prize 1964

4. Stephen ( Edwin ). born 1947, US writer esp of horror novels; his books, many of which have been filmed, include Carrie (1974), The Shining (1977), Misery (1988), and Everything's Eventual (2002)

5. William Lyon Mackenzie. 1874–1950, Canadian Liberal statesman; prime minister (1921–26; 1926–30; 1935–48)

Other Word Forms

• kinghood noun
• kingless adjective
• kinglike adjective
• kinglessness noun
• outking verb (used with object)
• subking noun
• underking noun
• unkinged adjective
• unkinglike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of king¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English cyng, cyni(n)g; cognate with German König, Dutch koning, Old Norse konungr, Swedish konung, Danish konge; equivalent to kin + -ing ³

Word History and Origins

Origin of king¹

Old English cyning; related to Old High German kunig king, Danish konge

Idioms and Phrases

• live like a king

Example Sentences

They are only a sticking point for would-be kings and despots who successfully deceive and subjugate the masses.

From Salon

The Cowardly Lion no longer trills about becoming king of the forest.

From Los Angeles Times

Pressed on whether the law should be changed, Streeting said: "When it comes to speech, context is king. We do have to, as legislators, tread really carefully when it comes to boundaries of free speech."

From BBC

Men and women who understand that the oaths they have sworn are to our country, not the man who would be king.

From Los Angeles Times

Take a look for yourself, and don’t be fooled by the tight T-shirts worn by these two homecoming kings.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• emperor 
• monarch 
• sultan