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

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

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

“This feature potentially gives strangers a window into a child’s life,” the commission said in a statement.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026

An independent disciplinary commission ruled at the time that the espionage was authorised by Eckert and was a "contrived and determined plan from the top down".

From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026

Paramount must not “directly or indirectly ... enter into any agreement or understanding with Universal to jointly co-distribute films” in the European countries for 10 years, the commission said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026

After opting against turning it into a historical monument to avoid drawing extremists, an expert commission decided to make it a police station.

From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026

Instead of the pope’s commission, Leonardo works on the portrait he still hasn’t given to Francesco and Lisa Gherardini.

From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day

The organisation which commissions specialist NHS care in Wales said funding was available but treatment was decided by clinical assessment.

From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026

Any sales that resulted would have been eligible for commissions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026

Members of the office said the county, including its commissions, is still obligated to meet with labor unions.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026

They either charge you for your services or they earn commissions from the investment products they sell you and/or charge you a fee on top of that.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026

I heard him ask Yao to help him recruit more, and I guessed he was trying to dodge the commissions of the likes of Mr. Dovlo and Jack of Diamonds.

From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo

The BBC confirmed it was Winkleman's decision to stop, and implied that they would've happily commissioned a second series - and possibly already had.

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

Former BBC One controller Peter Fincham, who hosts the TV podcast Insiders, likens it to the Davina McCall chat show he commissioned in 2006, which also ended after one series.

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

An internal review the council commissioned in 2023 came up clean, and Neal and Clement both remained in their jobs until last year, the Journal previously reported.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

Each included a short new work commissioned by the L.A.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2026

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

From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack

Composed by Kevin Day, the Cincinnati Opera’s Afrofuturist world premiere is a promising opening to its commissioning initiative.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026

The collaboration alternates between observing runs that collect scientific data and periods dedicated to commissioning and upgrading the detectors.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 2, 2026

"Nine years after my mother's murder, the man accused of commissioning it stands trial," the journalist's son, Paul Caruana Galizia, wrote on social media.

From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026

It said it was "discussing potential adjustments to the commissioning timetable" with its partners "to deliver the project safely and as quickly as possible".

From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2026

“Something about commissioning a piece for the circus, he was quite enthused about it before he left.”

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern

Related Words

• agency
• authority
• delegation
• office