leadership

noun

lead·​er·​ship ˈlē-dər-ˌship How to pronounce leadership (audio)
1
: the office or position of a leader
recently assumed the leadership of the company
2
: capacity to lead
a politician who lacks leadership
3
: the act or an instance of leading
leadership molds individuals into a teamHarold Koontz & Cyril O'Donnell
4
: leaders
the party leadership

Examples of leadership in a Sentence

a politician who lacks leadership What this country needs is the exercise of strong leadership!
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The litigation was dismissed in June 2021 after the Justice Department, under new leadership, dropped the case and a related criminal inquiry. Robert Alexander, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Sep. 2025 Recognition in the 2025 Gartner Magic Quadrant for SASE Platforms further validates Fortinet's leadership and suggests durable competitive advantages. Tony Zhang, CNBC, 24 Sep. 2025 Extending the tax credits is a bipartisan issue across both chambers of Congress, but a majority of Republican leadership has shown little interest in extending COVID-19-era provisions that occurred under the Biden administration. Rachel Schilke, The Washington Examiner, 24 Sep. 2025 Cozens’ former teammate Kyle Okposo took to Cozens right away, even commending the youngster for his leadership skills. Julian McKenzie, New York Times, 24 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for leadership

Word History

First Known Use

1765, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of leadership was in 1765

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Cite this Entry

“Leadership.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leadership. Accessed 24 Sep. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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