1. the main word or phrase that begins a dictionary entry and is defined or explained
Usage: lexicography

Examples

• The headword ‘run’ has dozens of different definitions in the dictionary.
• Students should look up the headword at the top of each dictionary entry.
• The headword appears in bold letters to distinguish it from the definition.
• Each headword is followed by its pronunciation and part of speech.
• The dictionary contains over 50,000 headwords.
• Cross-references help readers find related headwords.