committee
Americannoun
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a person or group of persons elected or appointed to perform some service or function, as to investigate, report on, or act upon a particular matter.
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Law. an individual to whom the care of a person or a person's estate is committed.
noun
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a group of people chosen or appointed to perform a specified service or function
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(formerly) a person to whom the care of a mentally incompetent person or his property was entrusted by a court See also receiver
Grammar
See collective noun.
Other Word Forms
- committeeism noun
- committeeship noun
Etymology
Origin of committee
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from Anglo-French; commit, -ee
Explanation
A committee is a group of people who come together to work on a project. Members of a committee commit their efforts to accomplishing a particular task, which can be anything from throwing a party to ending a war. You could join the Committee to Protect Groundhogs, Bumblebees and Chickadees (yes, there really is one), or you might aspire to a committee that debates questions of national importance. Committees are often subgroups of larger bodies, and the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Agriculture, which focuses on issues in the farming and poultry industries, is a good example. Committee members become experts on issues in agriculture and the group can then make informed decisions efficiently.
Vocabulary lists containing committee
Send a Message: Mit and Miss
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The Articles of Confederation (1777)
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List 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Speaking to the committee on Tuesday, the regulator's chief executive Chris Walters said they were seeing SEW making "steps forward".
From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026
Even if Warsh performs well before the committee, there is no clear path to a confirmation vote on the Senate floor.
From Barron's • Apr. 14, 2026
“That allows us to move forward as a committee and vote Kevin Warsh to the floor of the Senate. That will get him confirmed in the next several weeks,” Scott said.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 14, 2026
The committee had long followed a set of guidelines known as the Evidence to Recommendations framework, which establishes clear rules for how different types of evidence must be weighed and evaluated when making decisions.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026
It’s filled with Agents and Junior Agents, with Director Van Helsing and the rest of the grading committee getting the last row to themselves.
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
