hed.ˈwərd

Definitions

1. noun

a word that is the main or most important entry in a dictionary or other reference work.

“The headword in the dictionary was ‘courage’, which included several synonyms and antonyms.”

2. noun

the main or most prominent word in a title or heading.

“The headword of the news article was ‘Economic Crisis Hits Global Markets’.”

3. noun

a key word or phrase that is used to describe or summarize the main idea of a text or passage.

“The headword of the academic paper was ‘The Impact of Climate Change on Biodiversity’.”