employee

Rarely em·ploy·e,

[em-ploi-ee, em-ploi-ee]

noun

1. a person working for another person or a business firm for pay.

employee

/ ˌɛmplɔɪˈiː, ɛmˈplɔɪiː /

noun

1. Also called (esp formerly): employé. a person who is hired to work for another or for a business, firm, etc, in return for payment

Other Word Forms

• preemployee noun
• proemployee adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of employee¹

First recorded in 1825–35; from French employé “employed,” past participle of employer to employ; -ee

Example Sentences

Two lawsuits filed by the family allege an Angels employee supplied drugs to multiple players, including Tyler Skaggs.

From Los Angeles Times

They range from major multinationals, such as Bosch, down to small firms with a handful of employees, and they include companies which are heavily reliant on a single customer: JLR.

From BBC

The Culver City Police Department said that TikTok employees received a threat on social media Friday, prompting security to evacuate the Bristol Parkway location.

From Los Angeles Times

Martin told a story of a conversation with a club employee who told him that he felt "the tanker was turning around".

From BBC

It has 1,250 employees mostly based in the West Midlands, but much like JLR's factories, its main plants in Coventry and Kidderminster have been at a virtual standstill for weeks.

From BBC

Related Words

• agent 
• attendant 
• clerk 
• laborer 
• member 
• operator 
• representative 
• staff member www.thesaurus.com
• worker 

When To Use

What does employee mean?

An employee is someone who gets paid to work for a person or company.Workers don’t need to work full time to be considered employees—they simply need to be paid to work by an employer (the person or business that pays them). The term employee is sometimes used to distinguish contract workers from full employees (who often earn additional benefits), but in this example, both types of workers are considered employees in the general sense.Example: My company has more than 500 employees.