front office

American  

noun

• front offices
  plural

1. the executive or administrative office of a company, organization, etc.

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front office Idioms  

1. The policy-making or executive individuals in an organization, as in I'll have to check with the front office before I can give you a discount. This term was originally underworld slang for police headquarters or the main detective bureau. It soon was extended to other administrative offices and their personnel. [c. 1900]

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• front-office
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• front offices
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of front office

An Americanism dating back to 1895–1900

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

front office

This offseason, the Dodgers front office will try to strike a balance between continuity and fresh faces.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

“I credit our research group and front office for really looking through this and saying, ‘Are we missing anything?’”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

Tom Brady’s presence as a minority owner and influence in the front office helped too.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

After adding more than 15 people to the front office, president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka said, the Lakers were still focused on adding more scouts.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

“So, just…hang in there. Let us handle this. I’ll call the front office now, and I’ll let Jonesy and the school know the very second we find her. Try to stay calm.”

From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell

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