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Chief vs Chieftess - What's the difference?

chief | chieftess |

As nouns the difference between chief and chieftess

is that chief is (leader of group etc)A leader or head of a group of people, organisation, etc while chieftess is a female form of the word chief or chieftain, meaning the leader of a tribe or clan.

As an adjective chief

is primary; principal.

chief

English

(wikipedia chief)

Noun

(en noun)
  • (senseid)A leader or head of a group of people, organisation, etc.
  • * 1994 , Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom , Abacus 2010, p. 4:
    • My father, Gadla Henry Mphakanyiswa, was a chief by both blood and custom.
  • (heraldiccharge) The top part of a shield or escutcheon.
  • * 1889 , Charles Norton Elvin, A Dictionary of Heraldry :
    • When the Chief' is Charged with any figure, in blazon it is said to be "''On a '''Chief ".
  • (senseid)A head officer in a department, organization etc.; a boss.
    • All firefighters report to the fire chief .
  • An informal address to an equal.
    • Hey, chief.

    Synonyms

    * See also

    Derived terms

    (chief) * chief constable * chiefess * chief executive * chief executive officer/CEO * chief legal officer * chief mate * chief of staff * chief of state * chief petty officer * commander in chief * dexter chief * editor in chief * fire chief * in chief * police chief * war chief

    Related terms

    * captain * chef * chieftain

    Adjective

    (-)
  • Primary; principal.
    • Negligence was the chief cause of the disaster.

    See also

    * chef

    Statistics

    *

    Anagrams

    * ----

    chieftess

    English

    Noun

    (es)
  • A female form of the word chief or chieftain, meaning the leader of a tribe or clan.
  • *"This heroine was ever after treated by her nation as their deliverer, and made a chieftess in her own right, with the liberty to entail the same honour on her descendents ..." New travels among the Indians of North America , William Fisher, ed., p. 294; attributed to Rev. J. Hubbard. [http://books.google.com/books?id=xcIRAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA294&dq=chieftess&hl=en&ei=lUkqTMDcDsL58AaetZ3SCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCYQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false]
  • *Loved by a Maori Chieftess (title of a 1913 film from New Zealand)