leadership

leadership — noun

1. The collection of personal qualities and abilities that enable someone to guide,

1.nounB1
Definition

The collection of personal qualities and abilities that enable someone to guide, inspire, or direct other people effectively.

Example

The team captain showed real leadership by keeping everyone calm after the difficult first half.

collocation 'show leadership' + adjective 'real'

Élise's leadership during the science fair project earned praise from the judges.

possessive form: [name]'s leadership

Common collocations
  • strong leadership
  • real leadership
  • natural leadership
  • show leadership
  • demonstrate leadership
  • develop leadership
  • leadership qualities
  • leadership skills
Synonyms
  • vision

    Emphasizes the ability to see a future goal and inspire others toward it, rather than general directing ability.

  • initiative

    Focuses on the willingness to start something new or take the first step, a narrower quality than full leadership.

  • authority

    Implies power and the right to make decisions, often from a formal position, rather than personal qualities.

Antonyms
  • submissiveness

    Describes a tendency to follow rather than guide, the opposite of taking charge.

Grammar Patterns

show/demonstrate + leadership

adjective + leadership

[possessive] + leadership

Usage Note

Commonly paired with adjectives such as strong, real, natural, and effective. Typical verbs include show, demonstrate, display, develop, and lack.

Common Mistakes

She has a strong leadership.
She shows strong leadership.
Leadership as an abstract quality is uncountable and cannot follow 'a.'
He has good leadership.' (vague)
He has good leadership skills.' or 'He demonstrates good leadership.
Specify the quality or the action when the context is unclear.

2. The state or role of being the person who directs a group, organization, or acti

2.nounB1
Definition

The state or role of being the person who directs a group, organization, or activity.

Example

Mateo took over the leadership of the youth basketball club when the coach retired.

take over the leadership of [organization]

Under Ishaan's leadership, the neighborhood watch program grew from ten members to over fifty.

under [name]'s leadership + past result

Common collocations
  • under someone's leadership
  • assume leadership
  • take over leadership
  • offer the leadership of
  • years of leadership
Synonyms
  • command

    Suggests military or formal authority with power to give orders, stronger and more hierarchical than leadership.

  • direction

    Focuses on the act of guiding or instructing, less about personal inspiration and more about providing a clear course.

  • management

    Emphasizes control and organization of resources or people, often in a business context.

Antonyms
  • followership

    The state of being led rather than leading, a less common term but conceptually the direct opposite.

Grammar Patterns

under + [possessive] + leadership

take over + the + leadership + of + [organization]

[possessive] + leadership + of + [group]

Usage Note

Frequently used in the pattern 'under [possessive] leadership' to describe results or events that happened while someone was the leader. Also common with verbs such as assume, take over, and be offered.

Common Mistakes

Under his leadership position, the team improved.
Under his leadership, the team improved.
Do not pair 'leadership' with 'position' when using this sense; it is redundant.

3. The person or group of people who manage an organization and make its important

3.nounB2
Definition

The person or group of people who manage an organization and make its important decisions.

Example

The hospital leadership decided to open a new clinic in the neighborhood with the greatest need.

[organization] leadership + decision verb

Jabari was invited to join the leadership of the regional environmental protection agency.

join the leadership of [organization]

Common collocations
  • company leadership
  • school leadership
  • hospital leadership
  • political leadership
  • join the leadership
  • the leadership of
Synonyms
  • management

    A broader term that includes not only top decision-makers but also mid-level administrators; less focused on strategic direction.

  • administration

    Often refers to the group responsible for running an institution, especially in government, education, or healthcare.

  • board

    Specifically the elected or appointed group that oversees an organization's strategy and major decisions.

Antonyms
  • staff

    The employees who carry out tasks rather than make strategic decisions; the led rather than the leaders.

Grammar Patterns

[organization] + leadership + verb (singular)

the leadership + of + [organization]

join + the + leadership

Usage Note

Unlike 'management,' which can refer to mid-level administrators, this sense typically refers to the highest-level decision-makers in an organization, such as directors or executives. Takes singular verb agreement in standard English.

Common Mistakes

The school leadership are meeting now.
The school leadership is meeting now.
In this sense, leadership acts as a collective noun and typically takes a singular verb.
The leadership of the company includes several departments.
The leadership of the company includes the CEO and the board members.
When referring to people rather than the position, be specific about who is included.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Leadership, guidance, authority, management, and initiative all relate to directing or influencing others, but they emphasise different aspects. Leadership focuses on personal qualities that inspire and motivate people to follow a shared vision — it is about who you are, not just what you can order others to do. Guidance suggests offering advice and support while letting others make their own decisions, like a mentor helping a new employee learn the job. Authority centres on the legitimate power to make decisions and enforce rules, often tied to a formal position rather than personal traits. Management is about organising resources, people, and processes to achieve specific goals, more administrative than inspirational. Initiative refers to the willingness to start something new or take action without being told, a narrower quality than full leadership. A person can show initiative without having authority, and a manager may lack the leadership qualities that make people want to follow them.

leadership ↗guidance ↗authority ↗management ↗initiative ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • position of leadership
  • role of leadership
  • capacity for leadership
  • track record in leadership

Prepositions

Etymology

Proto-GermanicOld EnglishEnglish

'Leadership' is formed from 'leader' (someone who guides) plus the suffix '-ship,' which indicates a state, condition, or quality. 'Leader' comes from the Old English verb 'lædan,' meaning to guide or bring forward, which traces further back to the Proto-Germanic root '*laidjan.' The word came into common use in English by the early 1800s, as societies began to think about the qualities and roles of leaders as a distinct concept separate from the simple act of leading.