1
as in heavyweight
one of high position or importance within a group
a police sting that nabbed several kingpins of the city's drug trade
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2
as in leader
the person (as an employer or supervisor) who tells people and especially workers what to do
finally nailed the mob kingpin who had been controlling all the gambling rackets in the city
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of kingpin
Eventually, Sergei — now going by Kraven — begins knocking off a growing list of poachers, corporate rascals and international kingpins.
—
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 5 Dec. 2024
Dana White: The UFC kingpin is a longtime friend of Trump’s, and the president-elect invited him to speak at Trump’s victory party on election night.
—Joe Walsh, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025
In Myanmar’s borderlands, criminal networks that unite Chinese kingpins with ethnic warlords are kidnapping people from all over the globe to toil in factories that scam people online.
—Hannah Beech, New York Times, 31 Dec. 2024
He was initially arrested in Colombia in 1990 under a government program that promised drug kingpins they would not be extradited to the United States.
—Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 23 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for kingpin 
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 5 Dec. 2024
Dana White: The UFC kingpin is a longtime friend of Trump’s, and the president-elect invited him to speak at Trump’s victory party on election night.
—Joe Walsh, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025
In Myanmar’s borderlands, criminal networks that unite Chinese kingpins with ethnic warlords are kidnapping people from all over the globe to toil in factories that scam people online.
—Hannah Beech, New York Times, 31 Dec. 2024
He was initially arrested in Colombia in 1990 under a government program that promised drug kingpins they would not be extradited to the United States.
—Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 23 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for kingpin
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kingpin
Noun
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Today leaders of the world’s largest technology platforms kissed the president’s ring.—
Damon Beres,
The Atlantic,
20 Jan. 2025
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California’s leaders have already begun preparing a counteroffensive to Trump’s policy aims.—
Faith E. Pinho,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Not without consequence, of course, and not just from New York heavies—in his years of flouting the conventions of etiquette in the bush, around animals, whether while making images or just out wandering, Peter was not entirely unscathed.—
Chris Wallace,
Vogue,
17 Dec. 2024
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But at six-foot-two, with the big, square features and the theatrical presence of a human monolith, Chen looks as well as buzzes like the authority figures and heavies that are a star basso’s ticket to the really big time.—
airmail.news,
airmail.news,
7 Dec. 2024
Noun
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She's abruptly fired from her exercise show when her creepy boss (Dennis Quaid) decides to hunt for younger talent to be the face of the series.—
Eric Andersson,
People.com,
23 Jan. 2025
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Undeniably audacious in its plotting and conceit, Jacques Audiard’s musical about the wild odyssey of a transgender cartel boss in Mexico goes to places most movies wouldn’t dare, including a showstopper set during a transition surgery.—
Scott Tobias,
New York Times,
23 Jan. 2025
Noun
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The Heat duo of Adebayo and Ware entered Sunday with just one minute played together this season, with Spoelstra just recently starting to play the two bigs together in end-of-quarter defensive situations.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
20 Jan. 2025
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DiVincenzo had taken on the burden of crashing the glass to help out the Wolves bigs.—
Jon Krawczynski,
The Athletic,
18 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Her father, the foreman at a tool-and-die plant, was part of the sitdown strikes of the thirties.—
Michael Schulman,
The New Yorker,
20 Jan. 2025
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Out-of-towners and locals swapped notes on who was coming and going, when new jobs were starting and what drama had gone down with a foreman.—
Jovelle Tamayo,
New York Times,
25 Dec. 2024
Noun
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That could be a smart bet for Cohen, with Donald Trump’s election spurring business magnates and world leaders to flock to Palm Beach for its proximity to the new president’s Winter White House at Mar-a-Lago.—
Giacomo Tognini,
Forbes,
22 Jan. 2025
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Alongside billionaires like Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg, the tech magnates appeared in countless live shots of the transfer of power.—
Bloomberg,
Orange County Register,
21 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Vahe was an English major at the University of Pennsylvania and earned his master’s degree at Mizzou.—
Vahe Gregorian,
Kansas City Star,
19 Jan. 2025
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Nicole grew up in Idaho, graduated from Idaho State University and Northwestern University with a master’s degree in journalism.—
Nicole Blanchard,
Idaho Statesman,
17 Jan. 2025
Noun
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An arrogant advertiser at the peak of success is forced to promote a tycoon as a presidential candidate, while a mysterious stalker threatens to destroy his agency and his reputation.—
Rafa Sales Ross,
Variety,
21 Jan. 2025
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Harold Hamm: The oil tycoon—worth $18.5 billion—reportedly raised money for Trump, and has been involved in the transition, pushing to undo Biden-era electric car credits.—
Joe Walsh,
Forbes,
15 Jan. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Kingpin.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kingpin. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.
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