Link Centre Dictionary

kingmaker

king·ma·ker

UK/ˈkɪŋmeɪkə/ US/ˈkɪŋˌmeɪkɚ/ uncommon

noun

1.

an important person who can bring leaders to power through the exercise of political influence

  • “the Earl of Warwick was the first kingmaker”

Origin

From king + maker, originally used in the 16th century in “Warwick the Kingmaker”, an epithet of Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick (1428-1471), a key figure in the Wars of the Roses whose actions led to King Henry VI being deposed in 1461 and Edward IV appointed in his place, then Edward IV being replaced by Henry VI again in 1470.

Phrases

  • éminence grise
  • power broker
  • puppet master

Related words

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.