commissioner

American  

[kuh-mish-uh-ner] / kəˈmɪʃ ə nər /

noun

1. a person commissioned to act officially; member of a commission.

2. a government official or representative in charge of a department or district.

   the police commissioner; the commissioner of a colony.

3. an official chosen by an athletic association to exercise broad administrative or judicial authority.

   the baseball commissioner.

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commissioner British  

/ kəˈmɪʃənə /

noun

1. a person authorized to perform certain tasks or endowed with certain powers

2. government

   1. any of several types of civil servant

   2. an ombudsman See also Health Service Commissioner Parliamentary Commissioner

3. a member of a commission

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Other Word Forms

• commissionership noun
• subcommissioner noun
• subcommissionership noun

Etymology

Origin of commissioner

1400–50; late Middle English < Anglo-French. See commission, -er ²

Example Sentences

The EU's climate commissioner, Wopke Hoekstra, who was in Rome Tuesday for a hearing with senators on Italy's energy mix, declined to comment on Rome's decision.

From Barron's • Mar. 31, 2026

Baroness Anne Longfield, a former children's commissioner, will chair the inquiry into child sexual abuse by grooming gangs, which Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has promised will be a "moment of reckoning".

From BBC • Mar. 27, 2026

Mazzara was later appointed deputy commissioner of U.S.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 27, 2026

“We have a significant segment of our fans that have been vocal about the issue of competitive balance,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 26, 2026

An Osage delegation, including the chief Wah-Ti-An-Kah, was urgently dispatched to Washington, D.C., to petition the commissioner of Indian Affairs to abolish the ration system.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

Related Words

• administrator