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Politics & Government vocabulary · Government and the Executive

Head of state

Meaning in politics & government, with examples

nounCore term

In politics & government, head of state means: The person who officially represents a country at home and abroad, such as a president or monarch; in some systems the role is mainly ceremonial.

In Turkish: devlet başkanı, devletin başı

How it is used

Used in political science and diplomatic news. Heads of state receive ambassadors, sign laws, make state visits and represent the nation at ceremonies. In parliamentary systems the head of state and the head of government are different people.

Example sentences

  1. As head of state, the president receives the credentials of new ambassadors.

  2. The summit brought together heads of state from twenty countries.

Common collocations

  • heads of state
  • ceremonial head of state
  • act as head of state
  • state visit
  • head of governmentThe person who leads the government and runs its daily work, such as a prime minister or, in presidential systems, the president.
  • presidentThe head of state in a republic. In presidential systems the president also leads the government, while in parliamentary systems the role is often mainly ceremonial.
  • monarchyA system in which a king, queen or other hereditary ruler is the head of state; also a country with this system.
  • republicA state in which power is held by the people and their elected representatives, and the head of state is not a king or queen but usually an elected president.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Government and the Executive

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