as in heavyweight
one of high position or importance within a group
a big kahuna at a Hollywood talent agency, he's got the fancy car to prove it
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Recent Examples of kahuna
The ISM Manufacturing Index kicks things off today with plenty of more data over the coming days, anchored by the big kahuna, Friday’s employment situation report for July.
—
Jj Kinahan, Forbes, 1 Aug. 2022
But the big kahuna is still to come, as the company finally confirmed that the Supra is officially getting a manual transmission.
—Joey Capparella, Car and Driver, 15 Apr. 2022
The big kahuna of their SoCal tour-within-a-tour this week is Wednesday night’s show at Crypto.com Arena, a venue that’s seven miles and about 43 years from the Masque, where the earliest incarnation of the group started out as a punk group.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 30 Mar. 2022
And the big kahuna of them all, the Oscars, are just around the corner.
—Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 22 Dec. 2021
See All Example Sentences for kahuna
Jj Kinahan, Forbes, 1 Aug. 2022
But the big kahuna is still to come, as the company finally confirmed that the Supra is officially getting a manual transmission.
—Joey Capparella, Car and Driver, 15 Apr. 2022
The big kahuna of their SoCal tour-within-a-tour this week is Wednesday night’s show at Crypto.com Arena, a venue that’s seven miles and about 43 years from the Masque, where the earliest incarnation of the group started out as a punk group.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 30 Mar. 2022
And the big kahuna of them all, the Oscars, are just around the corner.
—Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 22 Dec. 2021
See All Example Sentences for kahuna
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kahuna
Noun
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The versatile Holmgren -- who averaged 8 boards per game in the regular season and is averaging 8.6 rpg in the playoffs -- should play heavy minutes against a Pacers team whose bigs spread the floor.—
Tyler Everett,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 June 2025
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The backcourt might not be as good, but if Condon and Haugh can make the leap, the Gators could adjust to playing more through their bigs.—
The Athletic College Basketball,
New York Times,
29 May 2025
Noun
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Gabriel Byrne’s new heavy, the Chancellor, hisses to Castañeda’s doomed daddy as Eve watches in horror.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
5 June 2025
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At the same time, more of Richie's heavies arrive at the safe house.—
Matt Cabral,
EW.com,
1 June 2025
Noun
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The cushy king beds are topped with $23,000 mattresses from 100-year-old luxury Swedish label Duxiana.—
Katie Nanton,
Travel + Leisure,
12 June 2025
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On Tuesday, the rap king visited the NPR offices for a 20-minute performance, featuring classics and new songs, backed by a band.—
Tomás Mier,
Rolling Stone,
10 June 2025
Noun
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While Jon is bound to leadership by a sense of duty, Daenerys sees herself as a liberator, a queen steeped in moral righteousness who freed slaves across the sea for the greater good.—
David Sims,
The Atlantic,
14 July 2017
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THE TRENDSETTER Salt & Straw is the homecoming queen of ice cream in LA.—
Cole Kazdin,
Los Angeles Magazine,
14 July 2017
Noun
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Mademoiselle Chanel’s lion mascot (a favorite of the designer, thanks to her astrological sign, Leo) was present in a collar necklace flanked on either side by two felines with diamonds that cascaded down the chest.—
Paige Reddinger,
Robb Report,
5 June 2025
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Related Articles While these designers might be looking to adolescence — from drawing on upbringings spent among lions and tigers in South Africa to fighting against the constrictions of adulthood by refusing to grow up — there’s no Peter Pan syndrome here.—
Violet Goldstone,
Footwear News,
5 June 2025
Noun
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This group includes finance mogul Stephen Smith, car dealership billionaire Norman Braman, industrial business magnate Harsh Goenka, homebuilder Patrick Neal and five anonymous respondents.—
Phoebe Liu,
Forbes.com,
7 June 2025
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Media magnate Ted Turner owns more than a dozen ranches across half a dozen states; retired golfer Greg Norman has an almost 12,000-acre game ranch in Colorado‘s White River Valley; and Kanye West has two Montana ranches totaling more than 10,000 acres.—
Abby Montanez,
Robb Report,
3 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Kahuna.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kahuna. Accessed 19 Jun. 2025.
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