preeminence in a particular category or group or field
<noun.state> the lion is the king of beasts
United States woman tennis player (born in 1943)
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United States guitar player and singer of the blues (born in 1925)
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United States charismatic civil rights leader and Baptist minister who campaigned against the segregation of Blacks (1929-1968)
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a checker that has been moved to the opponent's first row where it is promoted to a piece that is free to move either forward or backward
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one of the four playing cards in a deck bearing the picture of a king
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(chess) the weakest but the most important piece
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King \King\ (k[i^]ng), n. A Chinese musical instrument, consisting of resonant stones or metal plates, arranged according to their tones in a frame of wood, and struck with a hammer.
King \King\, n. [AS. cyng, cyning; akin to OS. kuning, D. koning, OHG. kuning, G. k["o]nig, Icel. konungr, Sw. konung, Dan. konge; formed with a patronymic ending, and fr. the root of E. kin; cf. Icel. konr a man of noble birth. [root]44. See {Kin}.] 1. A chief ruler; a sovereign; one invested with supreme authority over a nation, country, or tribe, usually by hereditary succession; a monarch; a prince. ``Ay, every inch a king.'' --Shak.
Kings will be tyrants from policy, when subjects are rebels from principle. --Burke.
There was a State without king or nobles. --R. Choate.
But yonder comes the powerful King of Day, Rejoicing in the east --Thomson.
2. One who, or that which, holds a supreme position or rank; a chief among competitors; as, a railroad king; a money king; the king of the lobby; the king of beasts.
3. A playing card having the picture of a king[1]; as, the king of diamonds.
4. The chief piece in the game of chess.
5. A crowned man in the game of draughts.
6. pl. The title of two historical books in the Old Testament.
Note: King is often used adjectively, or in combination, to denote pre["e]minence or superiority in some particular; as, kingbird; king crow; king vulture.
{Apostolic king}. See {Apostolic}.
{King-at-arms}, or {King-of-arms}, the chief heraldic officer of a country. In England the king-at-arms was formerly of great authority. His business is to direct the heralds, preside at their chapters, and have the jurisdiction of armory. There are three principal kings-at-arms, viz., Garter, Clarencieux, and Norroy. The latter (literally north roy or north king) officiates north of the Trent.
{King auk} (Zo["o]l.), the little auk or sea dove.
{King bird of paradise}. (Zo["o]l.), See {Bird of paradise}.
{King card}, in whist, the best unplayed card of each suit; thus, if the ace and king of a suit have been played, the queen is the king card of the suit.
{King Cole}, a legendary king of Britain, who is said to have reigned in the third century.
{King conch} (Zo["o]l.), a large and handsome univalve shell ({Cassis cameo}), found in the West Indies. It is used for making cameos. See {Helmet shell}, under {Helmet}.
{King Cotton}, a popular personification of the great staple production of the southern United States.
{King crab}. (Zo["o]l.) (a) The limulus or horseshoe crab. See {Limulus}. (b) The large European spider crab or thornback ({Maia squinado}). (c) A large crab of the northern Pacific ({Paralithodes camtshatica}), especially abundant on the coasts of Alaska and Japan, and popular as a food; called also {Alaskan king crab}.
{King crow}. (Zo["o]l.) (a) A black drongo shrike ({Buchanga atra}) of India; -- so called because, while breeding, they attack and drive away hawks, crows, and other large birds. (b) The {Dicrurus macrocercus} of India, a crested bird with a long, forked tail. Its color is black, with green and blue reflections. Called also {devil bird}.
{King duck} (Zo["o]l.), a large and handsome eider duck ({Somateria spectabilis}), inhabiting the arctic regions of both continents.
{King eagle} (Zo["o]l.), an eagle ({Aquila heliaca}) found in Asia and Southeastern Europe. It is about as large as the golden eagle. Some writers believe it to be the imperial eagle of Rome.
{King hake} (Zo["o]l.), an American hake ({Phycis regius}), found in deep water along the Atlantic coast.
{King monkey} (Zo["o]l.), an African monkey ({Colobus polycomus}), inhabiting Sierra Leone.
{King mullet} (Zo["o]l.), a West Indian red mullet ({Upeneus maculatus}); -- so called on account of its great beauty. Called also {goldfish}.
{King of terrors}, death.
{King parrakeet} (Zo["o]l.), a handsome Australian parrakeet ({Platycercys scapulatus}), often kept in a cage. Its prevailing color is bright red, with the back and wings bright green, the rump blue, and tail black.
{King penguin} (Zo["o]l.), any large species of penguin of the genus {Aptenodytes}; esp., {Aptenodytes longirostris}, of the Falkland Islands and Kerguelen Land, and {Aptenodytes Patagonica}, of Patagonia.
{King rail} (Zo["o]l.), a small American rail ({Rallus elegans}), living in fresh-water marshes. The upper parts are fulvous brown, striped with black; the breast is deep cinnamon color.
{King salmon} (Zo["o]l.), the quinnat. See {Quinnat}.
{King's counsel}, or {Queen's counsel} (Eng. Law), barristers learned in the law, who have been called within the bar, and selected to be the king's or queen's counsel. They answer in some measure to the advocates of the revenue (advocati fisci) among the Romans. They can not be employed against the crown without special license. --Wharton's Law Dict.
{King's cushion}, a temporary seat made by two persons crossing their hands. [Prov. Eng.] --Halliwell.
{The king's English}, correct or current language of good speakers; pure English. --Shak.
{King's evidence} or {Queen's evidence}, testimony in favor of the Crown by a witness who confesses his guilt as an accomplice. See under {Evidence}. [Eng.]
{King's evil}, scrofula; -- so called because formerly supposed to be healed by the touch of a king.
{King snake} (Zo["o]l.), a large, nearly black, harmless snake ({Ophiobolus getulus}) of the Southern United States; -- so called because it kills and eats other kinds of snakes, including even the rattlesnake.
{King's spear} (Bot.), the white asphodel ({Asphodelus albus}).
{King's yellow}, a yellow pigment, consisting essentially of sulphide and oxide of arsenic; -- called also {yellow orpiment}.
{King tody} (Zo["o]l.), a small fly-catching bird ({Eurylaimus serilophus}) of tropical America. The head is adorned with a large, spreading, fan-shaped crest, which is bright red, edged with black.
{King vulture} (Zo["o]l.), a large species of vulture ({Sarcorhamphus papa}), ranging from Mexico to Paraguay, The general color is white. The wings and tail are black, and the naked carunculated head and the neck are briliantly colored with scarlet, yellow, orange, and blue. So called because it drives away other vultures while feeding.
{King wood}, a wood from Brazil, called also {violet wood}, beautifully streaked in violet tints, used in turning and small cabinetwork. The tree is probably a species of {Dalbergia}. See {Jacaranda}.
King \King\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Kinged}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Kinging}). ] To supply with a king; to make a king of; to raise to royalty. [R.] --Shak.
Those traitorous captains of Israel who kinged themselves by slaying their masters and reigning in their stead. --South.
Calls for the king's return have gained urgency since the Soviets ended their nine-year intervention in Afghanistan last week by pulling out the last of their troops.
"I call them king makers.
After the delay, John Paul chatted with the king and other members of the royal family for 10 minutes.
Fried chicken king Al Copeland may resume his $290 million takeover attempt against Church's Fried Chicken, a federal appeals court ruled.
Canadian animators turning the Babar stories into a television series and feature film are well aware of the long memories their viewers may have of the elephant king.
The president is not a king," he said.
The king has refused to join Egypt, Syria and other Arab states that have sent troops _ even if they are primarily token contingents _ to join the Western buildup in Saudi Arabia against Iraq.
The market's latest woes come less than five months after the indictment of junk bond king Michael Milken, the former Drexel Burham Lambert Inc. executive who virtually created the current $200 billion arena for high-risk securities.
Karpov arrived and matched it by moving his king's pawn.
In Islamabad, insurgent leaders Rabbani and Gulbadin Hekmatyar criticized the Soviets for overtures to the former king.
"The delegation presented to the king a full evaluation on the Palestinians' current situation and the PLO directives following Jordan's recent measures to sever legal and administrative ties with the West Bank," the agency said.
Absolutely not." How well he does next week notwithstanding, Costas is considered to have star potential by NBC, whose talk-show king, Johnny Carson, is approaching retirement age.
The sumptuousness of a throne room is more fun for an audience and the music Pavarotti sings, and the way he sang it Thursday, are suitable for a king.
In a televised speech also seen in Israel and the occupied lands, the king challenged the PLO to try to make a Palestinian state of the territory his family ruled until it was seized by Israel 21 years ago.
The king advocated a diplomatic solution to the crisis. In sharp contrast, Ankara gave solid support to the coalition.
The Polish king was regularly prayed for in synagogues around the world.
Other artifacts found in the site were identified as tablets and inscriptions that could contain important information about the Assyrian king and his era.
The king made it clear that as a member of the United Nations, Jordan would abide by the principles and decisions of the world body.
No British king or queen has met an Irish president.
Dr Mahathir would no longer seek a weekly audience with the king. There would be no more state funds for the upkeep of royal yachts, and no more allocations for work on royal homes. By the end of last week Dr Mahathir had moved forward the big guns.
The king (Stephen Markle) and the queen (Jennifer Harmon) are also first-rate.
Churchgoers may also remember Susa as the city of king Ahasuerus (Xerxes) and his seductive queen Esther.
The king has continued to encourage U.S. efforts to solve the Arab-Israeli conflict.
To the king, such criticism sounds hypocritical.
Incorrectly deciding to keep my rooks connected, I waste time maneuvering my queen to the king file; it can still support the pawn thrust from there, but by then the ploy is too late, as I shortly find out.
The king also established a committee to study changing the constitution, which since 1961 has banned political parties.
The king suffered a stroke June 2 while in the hospital for treatment of a mild infection of the pericardium, the sac around the heart.
She's prim and reproving, with occasional lapses into softness, a bit like Anna with the king of Siam.
The king and queen arrived in Washington on Sunday to participate in events around the country marking the 350th anniversary of the first Swedish colony in America.
Bahadur said he pulled down the portrait because he was angry with the king for the April 6 crackdown.