Standard Lemma guide

executive

adj · noun · 10 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /ɪɡˈzɛkjʊtɪv/
  • UK: /ɛɡˈzɛkjʊtɪv/
  • US: /ɪɡˈzɛkjətɪv/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: IH0 G Z EH1 K Y AH0 T IH0 V Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Designed or fitted for execution, or carrying into effect.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Of, pertaining to, or having responsibility for the day-to-day running of an organisation, business, country, etc.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • executive act
  • an executive officer
  • executive government

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adj

Meaning 3

Exclusive.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • She works in an office with an executive bathroom.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A chief officer or administrator, especially one who can make significant decisions on their own authority.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

The branch of government that is responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions, and for the day-to-day administration of the state.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

A process that coordinates and governs the action of other processes or threads; supervisor.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, sciences

Examples

  • 1973, ACM Special Interest Group in Operating Systems, Fourth Symposium on Operating System Principles The second phase of the executive development proceeded through two steps as stated in Section 2. First, a failsoft executive was developed providing automatic failure detection and recovery [...]

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

adjective

Meaning 7

having the function of carrying out plans or orders etc.

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • the executive branch

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

noun

Meaning 8

persons who administer the law

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: administration, governance, governing body, establishment, brass, organization, organisation

Narrower terms: Bush administration, Clinton administration, Reagan administration, Carter administration

9

noun

Meaning 9

someone who manages a government agency or department

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: administrator

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: head, chief, top dog

Narrower terms: commissioner, Director of Central Intelligence, DCI, prefect, Secretary General, triumvir, Raffles, Sir Thomas Raffles, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, Stuyvesant, Peter Stuyvesant, Petrus Stuyvesant

10

noun

Meaning 10

a person responsible for the administration of a business

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: executive director

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: administrator, decision maker

Narrower terms: corporate executive, business executive, minister, government minister, rainmaker, Surgeon General, vice president, V.P.

History

Etymology

From Middle French executif, from Latin executivus, from Latin exsequi, from ex- ‘out’ + sequi ‘follow’.

Across languages

Translations

100 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: إِجْرَائِيّ (ʔijrāʔiyy) — designed for execution
  • Azerbaijani: icra — designed for execution
  • Azerbaijani: icraiyyə — designed for execution
  • Belarusian: выкана́ўчы (vykanáwčy) — designed for execution
  • Bulgarian: изпълни́телен (izpǎlnítelen) — designed for execution
  • Catalan: executiu — designed for execution
  • Chinese Mandarin: 執行的 /执行的 (zhíxíng de) — designed for execution
  • Chinese Mandarin: 行政的 (xíngzhèng de) — designed for execution
  • Czech: výkonný — designed for execution
  • Finnish: toimeenpaneva — designed for execution
  • Finnish: liikkeenjohdollinen — designed for execution
  • French: exécutif — designed for execution
  • Georgian: აღმასრულებელი (aɣmasrulebeli) — designed for execution
  • German: exekutiv — designed for execution
  • Greek: εκτελεστικός (ektelestikós) — designed for execution
  • Hungarian: végrehajtó — designed for execution
  • Hungarian: intéző — designed for execution
  • Kazakh: атқарушы (atqaruşy) — designed for execution
  • Macedonian: извршен (izvršen) — designed for execution
  • Macedonian: егзекутивен (egzekutiven) — designed for execution
  • Malay: eksekutif — designed for execution
  • Persian: اجرایی (ejrâ'i) — designed for execution
  • Polish: wykonawczy — designed for execution
  • Portuguese: executivo — designed for execution
  • Romanian: executiv — designed for execution
  • Russian: исполни́тельный (ispolnítelʹnyj) — designed for execution
  • Serbo-Croatian: ѝзвршнӣ — designed for execution
  • Serbo-Croatian: ìzvršnī — designed for execution
  • Slovak: výkonný — designed for execution
  • Slovene: izvršni — designed for execution
  • Spanish: ejecutivo — designed for execution
  • Tajik: иҷроия (ijroyiya) — designed for execution
  • Turkish: icra — designed for execution
  • Ukrainian: викона́вчий (vykonávčyj) — designed for execution
  • Uyghur: ئىجرائىي (ijra'iy) — designed for execution
  • Uyghur: иҗраий (ijraiy) — designed for execution
  • Bulgarian: изпълнителен директор (izpǎlnitelen direktor) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Catalan: executiu — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Catalan: executiva — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Chinese Mandarin: 執行者 /执行者 (zhíxíngzhě) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Czech: výkonný ředitel — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Finnish: johtaja — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Finnish: toimeenpaneva elin — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • French: cadre — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • French: gestionnaire — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • French: directeur — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • French: administrateur — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • German: Führungskraft — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • German: leitender Angestellter — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Greek: διοικητικό στέλεχος (dioikitikó stélechos) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Hindi: प्रशासक (praśāsak) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Hindi: प्रबंधक (prabandhak) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Hindi: कार्यपाल (kāryapāl) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Hungarian: ügyvezető — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Hungarian: vezető — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Hungarian: igazgató — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Hungarian: ügyintéző — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Hungarian: munkatárs — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Hungarian: előadó — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Hungarian: tisztviselő — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Italian: dirigente — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Korean: 간부 (ganbu) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Korean: 경영자 (gyeong'yeongja) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Macedonian: извршен директор (izvršen direktor) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Māori: kaiwhakahaere — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Portuguese: executivo — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Romanian: director — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Russian: исполни́тельный дире́ктор (ispolnítelʹnyj diréktor) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Russian: администра́тор (administrátor) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Swahili: mtendaji — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Turkish: yönetici — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Ukrainian: викона́вчий дире́ктор (vykonávčyj dyréktor) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Ukrainian: адміністра́тор (administrátor) — title of a chief officer or administrator
  • Bulgarian: изпълнителна власт (izpǎlnitelna vlast) — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Catalan: executiva — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Catalan: executiu — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Czech: exekutiva — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Czech: moc výkonná — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Dutch: uitvoerende macht — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Finnish: valtioneuvosto — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Finnish: toimeenpaneva elin — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • French: exécutif — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Georgian: აღმასრულებელი (aɣmasrulebeli) — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Georgian: აღმასრულებელი ხელისუფლება (aɣmasrulebeli xelisupleba) — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • German: Exekutive — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Hindi: कार्यपालिका (kāryapālikā) — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Hindi: कार्यकारिणी (kāryakāriṇī) — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Hungarian: végrehajtó hatalom — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Irish: feidhmeannas — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Khmer: នីតិប្រតិបត្តិ (ni teh bro teh bat) — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Macedonian: извршна власт (izvršna vlast) — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Navajo: beehazʼą́ąnii biłʼoʼnishjí — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Polish: egzekutywa — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Polish: władza wykonawcza — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Portuguese: executivo — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Romanian: executiv — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Romanian: organ executiv — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Russian: исполни́тельная власть (ispolnítelʹnaja vlastʹ) — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Turkish: yürütme — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
  • Ukrainian: викона́вча вла́да (vykonávča vláda) — branch of government responsible for enforcing laws and judicial decisions
Real reading context

executive in complete knowledge articles