sachem
[ sey-chuh m ]
/ ˈseɪ tʃəm /
noun
(among some North American Indians)
- the chief of a tribe.
- the chief of a confederation.
a member of the governing body of the League of the Iroquois.
one of the high officials in the Tammany Society.
Slang.
a political party leader.
Origin of sachem
1615–25,
Americanism; < southeastern New England Algonquian (compare Narragansett (E spelling)
sâchim, saunchum, Massachusett
sontim) < Proto-Algonquian
*sa˙kima˙wa; cf.
sagamore
OTHER WORDS FROM sachem
sa·chem·dom, noun sa·chem·ic [sey-chem-ik, sey-chuh-mik] /seɪˈtʃɛm ɪk, ˈseɪ tʃə mɪk/, adjective sa·chem·ship, nounWords nearby sachem
sacculus,
saccus,
sacellum,
sacerdotal,
sacerdotalism,
sachem,
sacher torte,
sacher-masoch,
sachet,
sachs,
sachsen
Example sentences from the Web for sachem
British Dictionary definitions for sachem
sachem
/ (ˈseɪtʃəm) /
noun
US
a leader of a political party or organization, esp of Tammany Hall
another name for sagamore
Derived forms of sachem
sachemic (seɪˈtʃɛmɪk, ˈseɪtʃə-), adjectiveWord Origin for sachem
C17: from Narraganset
sǎchim chief