What does cochair mean?
A cochair is a person who holds the position of chair jointly with one or more others, sharing responsibility for leading a committee, board, event, or organization. Rather than concentrating authority in a single presiding officer, a co-chaired structure distributes leadership, often to balance perspectives, represent different constituencies, or share a heavy workload. The word functions both as a noun — as in "the cochairs of the summit" — and, particularly in American English, as a verb meaning to serve in such a shared capacity. It carries a neutral, professional connotation and appears most often in business, political, nonprofit, and academic settings, where joint leadership is a practical arrangement rather than an unusual one. Derived simply from the prefix "co-" (meaning "together" or "jointly") attached to "chair," the term is transparent and modern, reflecting the collaborative ethos of contemporary organizations. Its variants, including "co-chairperson" and "co-chairwoman," appear across formal writing.
One of two or more persons who jointly act as chair of a committee, board, event, or other organized body, sharing its presiding authority.
"Both cochairs signed the letter announcing the new initiative."
Often styled "co-chair" in formal print; plural is simply "cochairs."
To serve as a joint chair of a meeting, committee, or event together with another person.
"They will cochair next year's charity auction."
Standard plural, used when referring collectively to all the joint chairs of a body.
"The cochairs of the panel presented their findings jointly."
Two people, one gavel: a cochair proves that sometimes the best way to run things is to split the seat down the middle.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of cochair
The word "cochair" is formed by combining the prefix "co-", from Latin "cum" meaning "with" or "together", with "chair", which itself traces back through Old French "chaiere" to Latin "cathedra", ultimately from Greek "kathédra" meaning "seat." The compound arose relatively recently in English, alongside similar formations such as "copilot" and "coauthor", to describe shared leadership roles. Cognates of the underlying root include "cathedral" and "chaise", both descended from the same Greek-Latin lineage.
Related word forms
How cochair is actually used
"Cochair" is common in organizational and institutional contexts and is often written as "co-chair" in formal publications, though the closed form is widely accepted. It is a neutral, professional term. The verb use ("to cochair a meeting") is well established in American English.
Easily confused with cochair
A chair is the single presiding officer of a body, while a cochair shares that leadership role jointly with at least one other person.