a person or thing that directs, controls, or regulates a member of the governing board of a business concern who may or may not have an executive function a person who directs the affairs of an institution, trust, educational programme, etc the person responsible for the artistic and technical aspects of making a film or television programme
Compareproducer 4 - another word (esp US) for
conductor 2
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
di•rec•tor /dɪˈrɛktɚ, daɪ-/USA pronunciation
n. [countable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- a person or thing that directs.
- Businessone of a group of persons chosen to govern the affairs of a company:She was elected to the board of directors.
- Show Businessone who interprets the script and supervises the development of a theater, film, television, or radio production:The director told the cameraman to give him a close-up.
- Music and Danceconductor (def. 3).
di•rec•tor
(di rek′tər, dī-),USA pronunciation n.
di•rec′tor•ship′, n.
- a person or thing that directs.
- one of a group of persons chosen to control or govern the affairs of a company or corporation:a board of directors.
- Show Businessthe person responsible for the interpretive aspects of a stage, film, or television production;
the person who supervises the integration of all the elements, as acting, staging, and lighting, required to realize the writer's conception. Cf. producer (def. 3). - Music and Dancethe musical conductor of an orchestra, chorus, etc.
- the manager or chief executive of certain schools, institutes, government bureaus, etc.
- Militarya mechanical or electronic device that continuously calculates firing data for use against an airplane or other moving target.
- Late Latin; see direct, -tor
- 1470–80
- 1, 2.See corresponding entry in Unabridged
- 5.See corresponding entry in Unabridged supervisor, head, manager, leader, administrator, chief, boss.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'music director' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):