Copresidents

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. People who share the office of president of an organization, company, or country at the same time as one another
2. Several individuals who jointly hold the top executive position of a body, each serving as a president alongside the others
3. Those who serve together as presidents of a group, sharing the highest leadership role in a single organization

Etymology: "Copresidents" is simply the plural of "copresident," a title shared by two or more people who jointly hold the office of president. The word is built from the prefix "co-," meaning "together" or "jointly," attached to "president," which comes from the Latin "praesidens," the present participle of "praesidere," meaning "to preside" or "sit in front," from "prae" (before) and "sedere" (to sit). So the structure is transparent: a shared role, with the parts meaning exactly what they say. The compound follows the same pattern as older English formations such as "coauthor" and "cofounder," where "co-" simply adds the sense of partnership to an existing title.