officer

[ aw-fuh-ser, of-uh- ]

noun

1. a person who holds a position of rank or authority in the army, navy, air force, or any similar organization, especially one who holds a commission.
2. a member of a police department or a constable.
3. a person licensed to take full or partial responsibility for the operation of a merchant ship or other large civilian ship; a master or mate.
4. a person appointed or elected to some position of responsibility or authority in the government, a corporation, a society, etc.
5. (in some honorary orders) a member of any rank except the lowest.
6. Obsolete. an agent.

verb (used with object)

1. to furnish with officers.
2. to command or direct as an officer does.
3. to direct, conduct, or manage.

officer

/ ˈɒfɪsə /

noun

1. a person in the armed services who holds a position of responsibility, authority, and duty, esp one who holds a commission
2. See police officer
3. (on a non-naval ship) any person including the captain and mate, who holds a position of authority and responsibility

   radio officer

   engineer officer

4. a person appointed or elected to a position of responsibility or authority in a government, society, etc
5. a government official

   a customs officer

6. (in the Order of the British Empire) a member of the grade below commander

verb

1. to furnish with officers
2. to act as an officer over (some section, group, organization, etc)

Other Words From

• of·fi·ce·ri·al [aw-f, uh, -, seer, -ee-, uh, l, of-, uh, -], adjective
• offi·cer·less adjective
• offi·cer·ship offi·cer·hood noun
• sub·offi·cer noun
• under·offi·cer noun
• un·offi·cered adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of officer¹

1275–1325; Middle English < Anglo-French; Middle French officier < Medieval Latin officiārius, equivalent to Latin offici ( um ) office + -ārius -ary; -er ², -ier ²

Example Sentences

Gary Wang, co-founder and chief technology officer of FTX, was sentenced to no time in prison on Wednesday, two years after the cryptocurrency firm collapsed and faced accusations of defrauding customers.

From Salon

The trial, which began on Friday, included testimony from more than a dozen law enforcement officers, Ms Riley's former roommate and a woman who lived in the same apartment as Ibarra.

From BBC

Northamptonshire Police have released an image of Mr Lamba in east London, which officers believe was taken after he abandoned his wife's body in the car.

From BBC

Her former husband, an ex-police officer, and her lawyer, were handed prison terms of one year and four months, and two years respectively, for hiding evidence to help her evade prosecution.

From BBC

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp, the policing minister in the previous government, said the police guidance on dealing with hate speech should be updated to ensure officers were not "policing thought" or "free speech".

From BBC

Related Words

• agent
• chief
• civil servant
• deputy
• director
• executive
• leader
• manager
• official
• representative