commission

American  

[kuh-mish-uhn] / kəˈmɪʃ ən /

noun

• commissions
  plural

1. 

   the act of committing or entrusting a person, group, etc., with supervisory power or authority.

2. an authoritative order, charge, or direction.

3. authority granted for a particular action or function.

4. a document granting such authority.

5. a document conferring authority issued by the president of the U.S. to officers in the Army, Navy, and other military services, and by state governments to justices of the peace and others.

6. the power thus granted.

7. the position or rank of an officer in any of the armed forces.

8. a group of persons authoritatively charged with particular functions.

   a parks commission.

9. the condition of being placed under special authoritative responsibility or charge.

10. a task or matter committed to one's charge; official assignment.

    The architect received a commission to design an office building.

11. the act of committing or perpetrating a crime, error, etc..

    The commission of a misdemeanor is punishable by law.

12. something that is committed.

    He was held accountable for his evil commissions.

13. authority to act as agent for another or others in commercial transactions.

14. a sum or percentage of what has been paid that is allowed to agents, sales representatives, etc., for their services.

    In addition to her salary, she will get a 20 percent commission for each sale she makes.

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verb (used with object)

• commissions,
  present (3rd person singular)
• commissioned,
  past participle,  past
• commissioning
  present participle

1. to give a commission to.

   to commission a new graduate of a military academy with the rank of lieutenant.

2. to authorize; send on a mission.

   I've been commissioned by my friend overseas to find him a cheap apartment in New York.

3. to give the order that places a warship, military command, etc., in a state of complete readiness for active duty.

4. to give a commission or order for.

   The owners commissioned a painting for the building's lobby.

idioms

1. in commission,

   1. in service.

   2. in operating order.

      A great deal of work will be necessary to put this car in commission again.

   3. Navy. Also into commission. (of a ship) manned and in condition for or ordered to active service.

2. out of commission,

   1. not in service.

      Telephone lines were out of commission for several days after the storm.

   2. not in operating order.

      Sorry, but I can't bake cupcakes for you while the stove is out of commission.

3. on commission, paid entirely or partially with commissions from sales one has made or for work one has done.

   The salespeople who are on commission earn 6 percent of the total amount they sell.

commission British  

/ kəˈmɪʃən /

noun

1. a duty or task committed to a person or group to perform

2. authority to undertake or perform certain duties or functions

3. a document granting such authority

4. military

   1. a document conferring a rank on an officer

   2. the rank or authority thereby granted

5. a group of people charged with certain duties

   a commission of inquiry

6. a government agency or board empowered to exercise administrative, judicial, or legislative authority See also Royal Commission

7. 1. the authority given to a person or organization to act as an agent to a principal in commercial transactions

   2. the fee allotted to an agent for services rendered

8. the state of being charged with specific duties or responsibilities

9. the act of committing a sin, crime, etc

10. something, esp a sin, crime, etc, that is committed

11. good working condition or (esp of a ship) active service (esp in the phrases in or into commission, out of commission )

12. the head of a department of municipal government

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verb

1. (tr) to grant authority to; charge with a duty or task

2. (tr) military to confer a rank on or authorize an action by

3. (tr) to equip and test (a ship) for active service

4. to make or become operative or operable

   the plant is due to commission next year

5. (tr) to place an order for (something)

   to commission a portrait

commission Cultural  

1. A fee paid to a broker or other financial agent for negotiating a sale. The fee is based on a percentage of the sale price.

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commission More Idioms  

1. see in commission; on commission; out of commission.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• intercommission
  noun
• recommission
  noun
• subcommission
  noun
• commissionable
  adjective
• commissional
  adjective
• commissive
  adjective
• uncommissioned
  adjective
• commissively
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• commissions
  plural

Participles

• commissioning
  present
• commissioned
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• commission
  simple
• commissions
  simple
• have commissioned
  perfect
• has commissioned
  perfect
• am commissioning
  progressive
• are commissioning
  progressive
• is commissioning
  progressive
• have been commissioning
  perfect progressive
• has been commissioning
  perfect progressive

Past

• commissioned
  simple
• had commissioned
  perfect
• was commissioning
  progressive
• were commissioning
  progressive
• had been commissioning
  perfect progressive

Future

• will commission
  simple
• will have commissioned
  perfect
• will be commissioning
  progressive
• will have been commissioning
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of commission

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin commissiōn-, stem of commissiō “commencement”; equivalent to com- + mission

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Explanation

The word commission has several very different meanings, but in its most basic meaning, commission is the act of passing a responsibility to someone else. If you receive a government commission, that means you have been assigned a task by the government. Another common meaning of commission is the amount of money an employee earns when they sell something: In addition to his salary, he gets a 1% commission on each sale. A commission is also an order for someone to do something and get paid: The artist received a commission for a new painting to hang in the building lobby. And a commission is a high-ranking position in the armed forces, or a special committee that controls or investigates something.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

commission commissions commissioned commissioning

Indeed, the former head of the electoral commission who announced Tshisekedi as the winner, Corneille Nangaa, has said as much.

From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026

Police said they arrested three suspects but the election commission called it an isolated local case.

From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026

Zhang, who was promoted to vice chairman of the party’s Central Military Commission last year, is currently the only uniformed officer serving under Xi on the commission, which controls the armed forces.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026

The seven-member commission has since been whittled down to just two members: Xi as chairman and Zhang Shengmin vice-chairman.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

It’s extremely Leonardo to abandon the first commission he ever receives.

From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day

The program hasn’t yet gone to the harbor commissions for approval.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2026

Some states, such as Illinois and Minnesota, have established commissions to begin the work of accountability already.

From Slate ● Oct. 21, 2026

The study, "A pilot study of daily blueberry intake modulates the gut microbiota enzyme commissions in older, sedentary adults with mild depressive symptoms," was published in the Journal of Nutrition, Health and Aging.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 18, 2026

State utility commissions across the country have approved and permitted substantial amounts of electric transmission infrastructure in recent years.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

For they knew well that royal commissions were assigned at seemingly random intervals.

From "A Single Shard" by Linda Sue Park

A study commissioned by staff representatives in 2024 found that cases of burnout were on the rise, with unions pointing to concerns about favouritism.

From Barron's ● Oct. 29, 2026

You will never guess who commissioned that report.

From Slate ● Oct. 27, 2026

The research, known as the Alcohol Intake and Health Study, was originally commissioned by the U.S. federal government to help shape updated national dietary recommendations.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 25, 2026

To fans, that was the most consequential part of the historic punishment dealt by the NBA, which commissioned a year-long investigation that determined the Clippers committed audacious levels of salary cap circumvention.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026

“Tsar Kazimir has commissioned hundreds of new churches across the kingdom.”

From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack

Tesla plans to begin commissioning equipment for a planned facility in its hometown of Austin, Texas, in 2027, it told investors on Wednesday.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 21, 2026

Paul Cremo, who directs the Met's commissioning program, said creating the other-worldly universe for "Bardo" -- in which tendrils engulf singers and ghosts explode -- challenged the Met's technical staff.

From Barron's ● Oct. 18, 2026

Other shows such The Artificial Human and Open Country will also go, it was announced on Thursday, while Radio 5 Live will also see a reduction in commissioning on its schedule and podcasts.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

In its lawsuit filed Sept. 10 against Altus Power and subcontractor Pearce Services, Lineage claims Altus sought to re-energize the solar array to complete testing and commissioning around June 23, 2025.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026

The palace would send only an expert—a true connoisseur—to handle the task of commissioning work.

From "A Single Shard" by Linda Sue Park

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