commissary

[kom-uh-ser-ee]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR commissary ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural com·mis·sar·ies.

a store that sells food and supplies to the personnel or workers in a military post, mining camp, lumber camp, or the like.

a dining room or cafeteria, especially one in a motion-picture studio.

a person to whom some responsibility or role is delegated by a superior power; a deputy.

(in France) a police official, usually just below the police chief in rank.

commissar.

Origin of commissary

1350–1400; Middle English commissarie (< Anglo-French) < Medieval Latin commissārius, equivalent to Latin commiss(us) (past participle of committere to commit) + -ārius -ary

Related formscom·mis·sar·i·al

[kom-i-sair-ee-uh l] /ˌkɒm ɪˈsɛər i əl/, adjectivesub·com·mis·sar·i·al, adjectivesub·com·mis·sar·y, noun, plural sub·com·mis·sar·ies.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for commissary

legate, representative, agent

Examples from the Web for commissary

Contemporary Examples of commissary

I suspect [Teresa] will get money sent in to her, so she can shop at the commissary.
How a ‘Real Housewife’ Survives Prison: ‘I Don’t See [Teresa Giudice] Having a Cakewalk Here’
Michael Howard
January 6, 2015
I don't recall ever seeing him in the commissary, and who would forget?
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days
David Freeman
December 13, 2014
To cook the macaroni the commissary sold hotpots, which you needed a permit to possess and could only buy one a time.
Tales of a Jailhouse Gourmet: How I learned to Cook in Prison
Daniel Genis
June 21, 2014
One of the strangest parts of the show, is the power the commissary has over inmates lives.
Best Business Longreads for the Week of August 24, 2013.
William O’Connor
August 25, 2013
With generic brand cigarettes sold in commissary for about a dollar each, packs were an effective unit of currency.
With Cigarettes Banned In Most Prisons, Gangs Shift From Drugs To Smokes
Seth Ferranti
June 2, 2013

Historical Examples of commissary

He was rewarded with the appointment of Commissary of Police at Niort.
A Zola Dictionary
J. G. Patterson
Thereupon she handed Muche's books and the copies set by Florent to the commissary.
The Fat and the Thin
Emile Zola
The commissary said there was quite sufficient there to hang him.
The Fat and the Thin
Emile Zola
There was no more question of the commissary of police that evening.
Therese Raquin
Emile Zola
The commissary, however, had begun to read the copies with a grave air.
The Fat and the Thin
Emile Zola

British Dictionary definitions for commissary

commissary

noun plural -saries

US a shop supplying food or equipment, as in a military camp

US army an officer responsible for supplies and food

US a snack bar or restaurant in a film studio

a representative or deputy, esp an official representative of a bishop

Derived Formscommissarial (ˌkɒmɪˈsɛərɪəl), adjectivecommissaryship, noun

Word Origin for commissary

C14: from Medieval Latin commissārius official in charge, from Latin committere to entrust, commit

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for commissary

mid-14c., "one to whom special duty is entrusted by a higher power," from Medieval Latin commissarius, from Latin commissus "entrusted," past participle of committere (see commit). Originally ecclesiastical; the military sense of "official in charge of supply of food, stores, transport" dates to late 15c. Hence "storeroom" (1882) and "dining room in a larger facility" (1929, American English).