official

American  

[uh-fish-uhl] / əˈfɪʃ əl /

noun

1. a person appointed or elected to an office or charged with certain duties.

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adjective

1. of or relating to an office or position of duty, trust, or authority.

   official powers.

2. authorized or issued authoritatively.

   an official report.

3. holding office.

4. appointed or authorized to act in a designated capacity.

   an official representative.

5. (of an activity or event) intended for the notice of the public and performed or held on behalf of officials or of an organization; formal.

   the official opening of a store.

6. Pharmacology. noting drugs or drug preparations that are recognized by and that conform to the standards of the United States Pharmacopeia or the National Formulary.

official ¹ British  

/ əˈfɪʃəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to an office, its administration, or its duration

2. sanctioned by, recognized by, or derived from authority

   an official statement

3. appointed by authority, esp for some special duty

4. having a formal ceremonial character

   an official dinner

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noun

1. a person who holds a position in an organization, government department, etc, esp a subordinate position

Official ² British  

/ əˈfɪʃəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to one of the two factions of the IRA and Sinn Féin, created by a split in 1969. The Official movement subsequently renounced terrorism and entered constitutional politics in the Irish Republic as the Workers' Party (now the Democratic Left)

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noun

1. a member of the Official IRA and Sinn Féin

Other Word Forms

• nonofficial adjective
• nonofficially adverb
• officially adverb
• preofficial adjective
• preofficially adverb
• pseudoofficial adjective
• pseudoofficially adverb
• quasi-official adjective
• quasi-officially adverb
• subofficial noun
• subofficially adverb
• underofficial adjective
• unofficial adjective
• unofficially adverb

Etymology

Origin of official

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Late Latin officiālis “of duty,” equivalent to Latin offici(um) “service, duty” + -ālis adjective suffix; office, -al ¹

Example Sentences

There has been no official government reaction to these allegations.

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026

U.S. forces launched a rescue mission in southwestern Iran after at least one American crew member ejected from a fighter jet downed by Iranian defenses, according to a U.S. official and news outlets.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

The US State Department said last year that "official complicity, including at senior levels, inhibited effective law enforcement action against trafficking crimes" in Cambodia.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

She had previously urged faculty to address grade inflation, but the school had yet to put forth an official directive.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

In 1973, a Turkish official made an exploratory dive to check out a report that sponge divers had brought handfuls of brilliantly colored glass from the bottom of a bay called Serçe Limani.

From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler

Related Words

• administrator
• agent
• bureaucrat
• civil servant
• commissioner
• director
• executive
• leader
• manager
• minister
• officer
• representative
• secretary