dean
noun
Simple meaning
An administrator in charge of a division of a university or college.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
deenIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈdin
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
An administrator in charge of a division of a university or college
“The new dean was in charge of the college of arts and sciences.”
A man who is the senior member of a group
“He is the dean of foreign correspondents.”
The senior member of some group of people.
A dignitary or presiding officer in certain church bodies, especially an ecclesiastical dignitary, subordinate to a bishop, in charge of a chapter of canons.
Any of various villages and hamlets in England
A place in the United Kingdom
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: An administrator in charge of a division of a university or college
Used this way, dean is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“The new dean was in charge of the college of arts and sciences.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
How It’s Used
The word’s distinct uses, one example each.
Man / seniornoun
“He is the dean of foreign correspondents.”
Administratornoun
“The new dean was in charge of the college of arts and sciences.”
More ways to use dean
- “He is the dean of foreign correspondents.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
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What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.