employer

[em-ploi-er]

noun

1. a person or business that employs one or more people, especially for wages or salary.

   a fair employer.

2. a person or thing that makes use of or occupies someone or something.

   an inadequate employer of one's time.

employer

/ ɪmˈplɔɪə /

noun

1. a person, business, firm, etc, that employs workers

2. a person who employs; user

Other Word Forms

• preemployer noun
• proemployer adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of employer¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; employ + -er ¹

Example Sentences

Sanchez’s employer, Fox Corp., is named as a co-defendent in the suit, in which Tole seeks compensatory and punitive damages to be determined at trial.

From Los Angeles Times

Jobless inertia and financial strife breed a cruelty that isn’t dissimilar from the cold strike of an employer maintaining their bottom line, cutting 100 workers with the same callousness that they’d cut 1,000.

From Salon

Job centre work coaches say they are struggling to find employers who can accommodate disabled people and get them into work.

From BBC

Sanchez’s employer, Fox Corporation, is named as a co-defendent in the civil suit, on a count of neglient hiring, retention and supervision.

From Los Angeles Times

Former state Controller Betty Yee agreed to both requests as well, arguing that the healthcare employers are focused on profit at the expense of patient care.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• boss 
• company 
• corporation 
• entrepreneur 
• executive 
• firm 
• management 
• manager 
• manufacturer 
• organization 
• owner 

When To Use

What does employer mean?

An employer is a person, company, or organization that employs people—pays them for work.The people who are paid to work are called employees. Employers provide employment.Less commonly, employer can mean something that occupies someone or someone that uses something (the word employ can also mean to use), as in Be a good employer of your time. Example: If the factory closes, thousands of people will lose their jobs—it’s the largest employer in the county.