chieftain
/ˈt͡ʃiːf.tən/noun
chieftain is spelled C-H-I-E-F-T-A-I-N: 9 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 33,636th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, chieftain means “A leader of a clan or tribe” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of chieftain is chieftains.
How many letters and syllables are in chieftain?
| Letters | 9: C-H-I-E-F-T-A-I-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 33,636th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is chieftain?
Chieftain appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 33,636th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce chieftain?
- /ˈt͡ʃiːf.tən/
- /ˈt͡ʃiːf.tɪn/
Chieftain has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-chieftain.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of chieftain
- chieftains plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does chieftain mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A leader of a clan or tribe.
- 2
A leader of a group.
The robber chieftain divided up the spoils.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Chieftain in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | chef |
| German | Häuptling |
| Portuguese | cacique, morubixaba, tuxaua, chefe , manda-chuva |
| Spanish | cacique, caudillo, jefe, jeque, cabecilla , líder |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does chieftain come from?
From Middle English cheveteyn, cheftayne, from Old French chevetaine, from Late Latin capitaneus (English captain), from Latin caput (“head”), from Proto-Indo-European *kauput- (English head), itself from Proto-Indo-European *kap-. Doublet of captain; related to chief.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).