employ

/empˈlɔɪ/em-PLOY

/ɛmpˈlɔɪ/em-PLOY

Meaningto fold in; to involve

Common meaning: to give work to

Other meanings: to use

emin
ployto foldLewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), p. 1387 · scan

‘in’ + ‘to fold’ → employ

Journey through time

Latinplicō, plicāvī‘to fold’
Old Frenchemployersource
Englishemploy‘to give work to’ · today

em- also in: embrace empathy empyrean embellish empirical

ploy also in: apply reply complex explicit multiple

Sources & notes

Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.

Pronunciation

UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.

Origin: Built on Latin plicō ‘to fold’.

Did you know: our wording, based on Lewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), entry plicō, p. 1387 · dictionary scan; Skeat, Etymological Dictionary (1898), entry EMPLOY, p. 189 · dictionary scan

Roots

plicō, plicāvī Latin “to fold”

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