officer
/ˈɔːfəsə/AW-fuh-sur
/ˈɔfəsɚ/AW-fuh-sur
Meaningone who has a duty
Common meaning: a person with authority in the armed forces, police or a group
- offica duty, a serviceSkeat, Etymological Dictionary (1898), p. 401 · scan
- eragent ending: one who
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: Formed in English from office + -er.
Dictionary: Skeat (1898), OFFICE, p.401 · scan
Source words
- officium Latin · source word “a duty, a service”
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