commissioner

American  

[kuh-mish-uh-ner] / kəˈmɪʃ ə nər /

noun

commissioners plural

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

Derived Forms

• commissionership
  noun
• subcommissioner
  noun
• subcommissionership
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• commissioners
  plural

Etymology

Origin of commissioner

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

Explanation

The noun commissioner refers to someone in charge of a formal group or organization, such as a police commissioner or a baseball commissioner. As you might guess, commissioner is related to commission, which describes a group that carries out a particular function. Commissioner can describe an official who directs or regulates a commission, or it can be that person's title. For example, if Theodore Young is the housing commissioner, in formal situations you’d refer to him as Commissioner Young.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

commissioner commissioners

The United Nations General Assembly voted Friday to renew Volker Turk's mandate as high commissioner for human rights for four years despite strong opposition from the United States, Russia and Israel.

From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026

Last week NBA commissioner Adam Silver said the regular-season schedule had not been set because the league is waiting on James.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

The EU’s industry commissioner learned the U.S. beat him to a rare-earth deal in Brazil three days before he was due to travel there.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

"We are adopting a more business-friendly and, may I say so, savvy approach," said EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

The American arrived in the company of General Steyn, the commissioner of prisons, who rarely made appearances on the island.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

The community relies heavily on funding from surrounding Lee County to staff law enforcement, repave roads and widen arteries connecting Lehigh Acres to the region, said Cecil Pendergrass, chairman of the board of county commissioners.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

Police and crime commissioners will be abolished as part of plans to devolve powers to Norfolk and Suffolk and create a mayorship covering the two counties.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

Many commissions cannot conduct business without a quorum of a simple majority of commissioners.

From Slate ● Jul. 13, 2026

At Tuesday’s Coastal Commission meeting, Jennifer Savage of the Surfrider Foundation stepped to the microphone and said to commissioners:

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2026

Along with the other two city commissioners, Jabo Waggoner and Art Hanes, Connor bought concrete and poured it in the golf course holes.

From "While the World Watched: A Birmingham Bombing Survivor Comes of Age during the Civil Rights Movement" by Carolyn Maull McKinstry

Related Words

• administrator