foreman
/ˈfɔːmən/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈfɔːrmən/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈfȯr-mən/ (ame, mw)
foreman — noun
- foremansingular
- foremenplural
1. an experienced worker who leads a team on a building site, in a factory, or on s
an experienced worker who leads a team on a building site, in a factory, or on similar physical work, telling them what to do each day and checking that the job is done properly.
Hari has been the foreman at the building site near the river for fifteen years.
noun + at + workplace; describes job title
The foreman shouted at the new workers when they forgot to wear their hard hats.
subject of an action verb; typical workplace scenario
Before the concrete was poured, Tuan asked the foreman to check the wooden frame one more time.
Sofie was promoted to foreman after running her team safely for two years without a single accident.
Every morning the foreman of the road crew handed out the day's tasks before the lorries arrived.
- supervisor
wider — works in any setting, including offices
- overseer
old-fashioned; can sound harsh because of its historical links to slavery
- gaffer
British informal for the foreman or boss on a building site
- ganger
British, specifically for the leader of a small outdoor work gang
- labourer
the worker doing the physical task, not the one in charge
- apprentice
a trainee, ranked below the foreman
文法句型
foreman of [the crew/site/project]
用法筆記
Almost always refers to manual or industrial work — building, factory, dock, road, mining. Office supervisors are 'managers' or 'team leaders', not foremen. Many workplaces now prefer the gender-neutral 'foreperson' or 'supervisor', though 'foreman' is still used for both men and women in many trades.
常見錯誤
2. the juror picked by the rest of the jury to guide their private discussions and
the juror picked by the rest of the jury to guide their private discussions and to read out their final decision in court.
Emre was chosen as foreman of the jury on the first morning of the trial.
passive: be chosen as foreman
After three days of arguing, the foreman finally stood up and read out the verdict.
subject of read out the verdict — the defining action
The judge asked the foreman whether the jury had reached a unanimous decision.
As foreman, Yuki had to keep the discussion calm when two jurors began shouting at each other.
- foreperson
gender-neutral and now preferred in many courts
- presiding juror
formal American legal term used in some states
- jury chair
occasional informal alternative
文法句型
foreman of the jury
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1: this 'foreman' has no workplace authority, only a procedural role inside a single trial. Often appears in fixed phrase 'foreman of the jury'. In modern courts the gender-neutral 'foreperson' is increasingly preferred, but 'foreman' is still standard legal English.