American dated slang for the person in charge — the boss, the head honcho, the one with the most authority. The image suggests someone who sleeps on a high pillow, elevated above others in status and comfort. The term has a folksy, early 20th-century American flavour.
Nobody made a decision without clearing it with the high pillow first.
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(US, slang, dated) The boss; the man in charge.
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Regional slang from around the English-speaking world — British, Australian, Irish, Caribbean, Nigerian, Filipino, AAVE, and the hyphenated-English dialects that make the internet sound local.
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