Englishhead honcho
Meaning: the person in charge; the leader.
Example: “If you want a refund, you'll have to talk to the head honcho.”
Origin: From the Japanese hanchō, meaning squad leader or group chief — han, a squad or section, plus chō, head or chief. It entered American English through servicemen: the word is documented among American prisoners of war held in Japan during the Second World War, and spread further through the postwar occupation of Japan and then the Korean War, arriving home with returning troops across the 1940s and 1950s. "Head honcho" is strictly redundant, since hanchō already carries the sense of head, but the doubling is simply what the phrase settled into in English — an ordinary fate for a borrowed word whose internal parts are invisible to the people using it.
More English idioms
- up the creek without a paddle in a difficult situation without means to escape.
- paint the town red to celebrate wildly; to party extensively.
- fit as a fiddle in excellent physical condition; healthy.
- take the plunge to commit to something risky; to make a decisive move.
- a nose for something a talent for finding or recognizing something; keen instinct.
- keep your chin up to remain optimistic; to stay courageous during difficulty.
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Words that look familiar in another language but mean something else entirely.
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