Etymology From Japanese 班(はん)長(ちょう) (hanchō, “squad leader”), from 19th c. Mandarin 班長 /班长 (bānzhǎng, “team leader”). Probably entered English during World War II: many apocryphal stories describe American soldiers hearing Japanese prisoners-of-war refer to their lieutenants as hanchō.
Says they had no choice. Says the NVA killed the old honcho when he said no. Now he says all the rice is theirs.1986, Oliver Stone, Platoon (motion picture), spoken by Private Gator Lerner (Johnny Depp):
For years, snobbery has been a hallmark of this city of wealth and glamour, movie stars and entertainment honchos, where it is possible to spend $20,000 for a watch, $6,000 for a suit with 14-karat gold pinstriping or $15,000 for a handbag of rare leather.1992 October 26, Calvin Sims, “Hard Times, Even on Rodeo Drive”, in The New York Times (Business Day section), New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 26 May 2015:
2 more examples
Mostly he wrote what the higher honchos in the newsroom referred to, often condescendingly, as “offbeat” stories.1999, Dave Barry, Big Trouble, Penguin, published 2010, →ISBN, page 13:
Gulfstream makes jets for both Hollywood honchos and foreign governments like Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.2001, Michael Moore, Stupid White Men, page 22:
Etymology From Japanese 班(はん)長(ちょう) (hanchō, “squad leader”), from 19th c. Mandarin 班長 /班长 (bānzhǎng, “team leader”). Probably entered English during World War II: many apocryphal stories describe American soldiers hearing Japanese prisoners-of-war refer to their lieutenants as hanchō.
I had never honchoed that many people so even something as simple as ordering them to knead dough or fondant became an important decision.2010, Buddy Valastro, Cake Boss, Simon and Schuster, published 2020, →ISBN, page 142:
The task of choosing the clips that comprised the allotted 10 minutes in the bake-off was left to the supervising sound editor, as it was he or she who honchoed the preparation of the soundtrack for the rerecording mixing stage in the first place.2012, David Lewis Yewdall, Practical Art of Motion Picture Sound, Taylor & Francis, →ISBN: