1
a
: the head of the chapter of a collegiate or cathedral church
b
: a Roman Catholic priest who supervises one district of a diocese
2
a
: the head of a division, faculty, college, or school of a university
b
: a college or secondary school administrator in charge of counseling and disciplining students
3
dean
intransitive verb
Synonyms
Examples of dean in a Sentence
She's the dean of the university's business school.
the dean of liberal arts
Recent Examples on the Web
Advertisement Last year, Mark Maddix, PLNU’s dean of theology, was fired in a complicated dispute that involved his support of a former adjunct teacher who had publicly expressed support for LGBTQ+ people.
—
Gary Robbins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Apr. 2024
By Karen Breslau | Bloomberg Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of UC Berkeley’s School of Law and an ardent supporter of free speech, rebuked a group of students for staging a pro-Palestinian protest at his home as the fallout from Israel’s war in Gaza continues to roil US campuses.
—Bloomberg, The Mercury News, 11 Apr. 2024
After retiring from the military, my grandpa went to work for Hewlett-Packard, and my grandma served as assistant to the dean at Stanford University.
—Ebony Flake, Essence, 8 Apr. 2024
More on America’s College Campuses Stanford’s New President: The next president of the university will be Jonathan Levin, an economist who currently serves as dean of the graduate business school and whose association with the university dates back to his undergraduate days in the 1990s.
—Ron Lieber, New York Times, 5 Apr. 2024
Stanford University on Thursday named business school dean Jonathan Levin its new president, seven months after its former top resident resigned amid allegations of research misconduct.
—Jaweed Kaleem, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2024
Guidance counselor Shawn Hopkins and former dean of students Nicholas Ejak both met with the Crumbley parents and their son in the hours before the shooting began.
—Erik Ortiz, NBC News, 4 Apr. 2024
The school’s dean told local police on Nov. 2, 2023, that Renner — who was absent that day — had been accused of murder on social media, 12 News reports.
—Nicole Acosta, Peoplemag, 4 Apr. 2024
Networks, meanwhile, need contributors to speak authoritatively and get beyond talking points, said Mark Lukasiewicz, a former NBC executive who is now dean of Hofstra University's communications school.
—David Bauder, Quartz, 29 Mar. 2024
Gary Robbins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Apr. 2024
By Karen Breslau | Bloomberg Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of UC Berkeley’s School of Law and an ardent supporter of free speech, rebuked a group of students for staging a pro-Palestinian protest at his home as the fallout from Israel’s war in Gaza continues to roil US campuses.
—Bloomberg, The Mercury News, 11 Apr. 2024
After retiring from the military, my grandpa went to work for Hewlett-Packard, and my grandma served as assistant to the dean at Stanford University.
—Ebony Flake, Essence, 8 Apr. 2024
More on America’s College Campuses Stanford’s New President: The next president of the university will be Jonathan Levin, an economist who currently serves as dean of the graduate business school and whose association with the university dates back to his undergraduate days in the 1990s.
—Ron Lieber, New York Times, 5 Apr. 2024
Stanford University on Thursday named business school dean Jonathan Levin its new president, seven months after its former top resident resigned amid allegations of research misconduct.
—Jaweed Kaleem, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2024
Guidance counselor Shawn Hopkins and former dean of students Nicholas Ejak both met with the Crumbley parents and their son in the hours before the shooting began.
—Erik Ortiz, NBC News, 4 Apr. 2024
The school’s dean told local police on Nov. 2, 2023, that Renner — who was absent that day — had been accused of murder on social media, 12 News reports.
—Nicole Acosta, Peoplemag, 4 Apr. 2024
Networks, meanwhile, need contributors to speak authoritatively and get beyond talking points, said Mark Lukasiewicz, a former NBC executive who is now dean of Hofstra University's communications school.
—David Bauder, Quartz, 29 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dean.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near dean
Cite this Entry
“Dean.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dean. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
dean
noun1
: the head of the chapter of a cathedral church
2
a
: the head of a division, faculty, college, or school of a university
b
: a college or secondary school administrator in charge of counseling or disciplining students
3
: the senior member of a group
the dean of the diplomatic corps
Biographical Definition
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