Man is the head, but woman turns it.

The saying presents formal male authority as incomplete: although a man may be called the head, a woman is portrayed as directing his choices and determining where that authority leads.

It relies on a traditional hierarchy between men and women while suggesting indirect female influence. It may be humorous, approving, or critical, but it should not be taken as endorsing stereotypes about either gender.

Use it cautiously when discussing a woman’s influence over a man regarded as the formal decision-maker, especially in historical or joking contexts. Its fixed gender roles and suggestion of covert control or male weakness can sound dated, sexist, or manipulative in modern discussion.