# queen bee

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/queen-bee
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

The most important or dominant woman in an organization or situation.

## Examples

- She acts like the queen bee of the office.
- Everyone knows she is the queen bee here, so you should probably ask for her approval first.
- Despite her outward charm, she operated as the undisputed queen bee, carefully controlling the social hierarchy of the entire department.

## Origin

From the compound of queen and bee. Middle English previously employed the term kyng of been, literally the king of bees, to describe the same role.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.