clerk

[ klurk; British klahrk ]

noun

1. a person employed, as in an office, to keep records, file, type, or perform other general office tasks.
2. a salesclerk.
3. a person who keeps the records and performs the routine business of a court, legislature, board, etc.
4. law clerk.
5. a member of the clergy; ecclesiastic.
6. a lay person charged with various minor ecclesiastical duties.
7. Archaic.
   1. a person who is able to read, or to read and write.
   2. a scholar.

verb (used without object)

1. to act or serve as a clerk.

clerk

/ klɜːrk; klɑːk /

noun

1. a worker, esp in an office, who keeps records, files, etc
2. clerk to the justices
   (in England) a legally qualified person who sits in court with lay justices to advise them on points of law
3. an employee of a court, legislature, board, corporation, etc, who keeps records and accounts, etc

   a town clerk

4. Also calledclerk of the House a senior official of the House of Commons
5. Also calledclerk in holy orders a cleric
6. short for salesclerk
7. Also calleddesk clerk a hotel receptionist
8. archaic.
   a scholar

verb

1. intr to serve as a clerk

Derived Forms

• ˈclerkdom, noun
• ˈclerkship, noun
• ˈclerkish, adjective

Other Words From

• clerkish adjective
• clerklike adjective
• clerkship noun
• outclerk noun
• subclerk noun
• sub·clerkship noun
• under·clerk noun
• under·clerkship noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of clerk¹

before 1000; Middle English, Old English clerc, variant of cleric < Late Latin clēricus cleric

Word History and Origins

Origin of clerk¹

Old English clerc, from Church Latin clēricus, from Greek klērikos cleric, relating to the heritage (alluding to the Biblical Levites, whose inheritance was the Lord), from klēros heritage

Example Sentences

Sarah Lemmon, the clerk of the council, said the supplier told her it could not make any promises.

From BBC

The effort benefited in large part from the rise of computers and automation, allowing machines to complete tasks once performed by human clerks.

From Los Angeles Times

Torres submitted a resignation letter to the San Jose city clerk’s office hours before his arrest Tuesday.

From Los Angeles Times

The machine in question was taken out of action until it was inspected, and later in the day the county clerk posted a video on Facebook showing the machine working correctly.

From BBC

Assignments include service dog training, construction work, clerking positions, computer coding, hospice care and janitorial jobs.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• agent
• auditor
• bookkeeper
• cashier
• employee
• operator
• receptionist
• salesperson
• secretary
• teller
• worker