commissioner

noun

com·​mis·​sion·​er kə-ˈmi-sh(ə-)nər 

: a person with a commission: such as

a

: a member of a commission

b

: the representative of the governmental authority in a district, province, or other unit often having both judicial and administrative powers

c

: the officer in charge of a department or bureau of the public service

d

: the administrative head of a professional sport

commissionership

kə-ˈmi-sh(ə-)nər-ˌship 

noun

Examples of commissioner in a Sentence

The baseball commissioner decided to suspend the players for 10 games.

Recent Examples on the Web

Investigators hail crucial role of public in finding person of interest Tisch, the police commissioner, said the tip from the McDonald's employee in Thompson's slaying is the third recent case in which the public has helped police. —Nick Penzenstadler, USA TODAY, 10 Dec. 2024

But, under Atkins, a conservative lawyer who served as an S.E.C. commissioner during George W. Bush’s Administration and who now co-chairs the Token Alliance, a crypto lobbying group, the agency’s ongoing lawsuits and other cases would presumably be put on hold. —John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024

Regrettably, while there was a broad consensus that something should be done about the boom and bust cycle, the commissioners could not agree on what to do about it. —Jon Coupal, Orange County Register, 8 Dec. 2024

Noteworthy Charles Rettig, a shareholder in Chamberlain Hrdlicka’s tax controversy and litigation practice and former IRS commissioner, wrote an Op-Ed on IRS funding. —Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes, 7 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, "person empowered to carry out defined duties," borrowed from Anglo-French, borrowed from Medieval Latin commissiōnārius, from commissiōn-, commissiō commission entry 1 + Latin -ārius -ary entry 1

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing commissioner

• high commissioner
• resident commissioner

Kids Definition

commissioner

noun

com·​mis·​sion·​er kə-ˈmish-(ə-)nər 

1

: a member of a commission

2

: an official in charge of a government department

Police Commissioner

Legal Definition

commissioner

noun

com·​mis·​sion·​er

: a person with a commission: as

a

: a member of a commission

b

often capitalized : the officer in charge of a government agency

a police commissioner