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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of kingpin
Then, in 2005, a kingpin named Edgar Valdez Villarreal (a.k.a.
—
Antón Barba-Kay, The Atlantic, 26 Apr. 2025
Franks, after all, gave Gibbs the Hernandez file, allowing Gibbs to track the kingpin down and exact justice for his late wife and daughter.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 24 Apr. 2025
The book is about a Mexican bookseller who is forced to flee as an undocumented immigrant to the United States, along with her son, after her journalist husband exposes a local drug kingpin.
—Kris Slugg, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 May 2025
For years, Mexican police, sometimes with U.S. assistance, have been destroying drug labs and taking out kingpins — to no apparent effect on cross-border smuggling.
—Patrick J. McDonnell, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for kingpin
Antón Barba-Kay, The Atlantic, 26 Apr. 2025
Franks, after all, gave Gibbs the Hernandez file, allowing Gibbs to track the kingpin down and exact justice for his late wife and daughter.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 24 Apr. 2025
The book is about a Mexican bookseller who is forced to flee as an undocumented immigrant to the United States, along with her son, after her journalist husband exposes a local drug kingpin.
—Kris Slugg, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 May 2025
For years, Mexican police, sometimes with U.S. assistance, have been destroying drug labs and taking out kingpins — to no apparent effect on cross-border smuggling.
—Patrick J. McDonnell, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for kingpin
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kingpin
Noun
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Listen to this article Chicago police said seven teens were wounded in an overnight shooting at a large gathering in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood after a St. Sabina graduation party, drawing an angry statement from the church’s longtime leader, Father Michael Pfleger.—
Deanese Williams-Harris,
Chicago Tribune,
1 June 2025
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Leading the charge on this has been state Sen. Brian Jones of Santee, the Senate Republican leader.—
Michael Smolens,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
1 June 2025
Noun
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Wingard’s sequel is a bit more abstract than its predecessor, focusing too much on strange world-building and too little on the battle between our two beloved heavies.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
8 May 2025
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Harry heads back to the yard, where a group of Kevin's Czechoslovakian hired heavies are preparing for war.—
Matt Cabral,
EW.com,
13 Apr. 2025
Noun
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One of the most quotable lines in FromSoftware’s hit video game Elden Ring is a line of of the early bosses says to you, foul Tarnished, during a fight.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2025
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A lot of us end up chasing approval from a boss, from our parents.—
Fidel Martinez,
Los Angeles Times,
23 May 2025
Noun
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All season long, New York has struggled to contain stretch bigs.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
21 May 2025
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In his absence, Kornet dominated the paint, finally tilting the floor back toward the Celtics when the Knicks deployed two bigs; a lineup that had been dogging Boston in this series.—
Andrew Callahan,
Boston Herald,
15 May 2025
Noun
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Did the foreman just admit the jury discussed the case prior to deliberations?—
Maureen Maher,
CBS News,
24 Apr. 2025
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The Lodge, the Villa, and Antelope Ridge were used as guest accommodations that provide a variety of amenities like a game room, a wet bar, and an indoor jacuzzi, while ranch staff shacked up at the two foremen’s houses on the north and south ends of the ranch.—
Demetrius Simms,
Robb Report,
3 Feb. 2025
Noun
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The brand is a jewel in the crown of luxury magnate Bernard Arnault, the founder of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, who has owned Dior since 1984.—
Joelle Diderich,
Footwear News,
29 May 2025
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But the character is more of a riff on the real-life oil baron Calouste Gulbenkian, the world’s richest man at the time of his death in 1955 and a template for today’s globe-roaming magnates who pledge allegiance only to their own ambitions.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
29 May 2025
Noun
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The master artisan will also assemble an accessory from the BADURA high leather goods collection, deftly using his hands as tools honed through decades of proficiency and techniques steeped in centuries-old traditions.—
Alexandra Kirkman,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2025
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Skills build on themselves, so children who don’t master kindergarten phonics or counting could remain behind in future grades.—
Claire Cain Miller,
New York Times,
31 May 2025
Noun
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Luxury goods tycoon and Afrikaner Johann Rupert was also in the delegation to help ease Trump’s concerns that land was being seized from white farmers.—
Gerald Imray,
Chicago Tribune,
21 May 2025
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In both the book and the Kurosawa film, the tycoon at the center of the story’s conflict is in the shoe business.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
20 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Kingpin.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kingpin. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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