official

[uh-fish-uhl]

noun

1. a person appointed or elected to an office or charged with certain duties.

adjective

1. of or relating to an office or position of duty, trust, or authority.

   official powers.

2. authorized or issued authoritatively.

   an official report.

3. holding office.

4. appointed or authorized to act in a designated capacity.

   an official representative.

5. (of an activity or event) intended for the notice of the public and performed or held on behalf of officials or of an organization; formal.

   the official opening of a store.

6. Pharmacology.,  noting drugs or drug preparations that are recognized by and that conform to the standards of the United States Pharmacopeia or the National Formulary.

official

¹

/ əˈfɪʃəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to an office, its administration, or its duration

2. sanctioned by, recognized by, or derived from authority

   an official statement

3. appointed by authority, esp for some special duty

4. having a formal ceremonial character

   an official dinner

noun

1. a person who holds a position in an organization, government department, etc, esp a subordinate position

Official

²

/ əˈfɪʃəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to one of the two factions of the IRA and Sinn Féin, created by a split in 1969. The Official movement subsequently renounced terrorism and entered constitutional politics in the Irish Republic as the Workers' Party (now the Democratic Left)

noun

1. a member of the Official IRA and Sinn Féin

Other Word Forms

• officially adverb
• nonofficial adjective
• nonofficially adverb
• preofficial adjective
• preofficially adverb
• pseudoofficial adjective
• pseudoofficially adverb
• quasi-official adjective
• quasi-officially adverb
• subofficial noun
• subofficially adverb
• underofficial adjective
• unofficial adjective
• unofficially adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of official¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Late Latin officiālis “of duty,” equivalent to Latin offici(um) “service, duty” + -ālis adjective suffix; office, -al ¹

Example Sentences

GOP officials in Mississippi have appealed to the high court to save a state law that allows for the counting of absentee ballots postmarked by Election Day and received up to five business days later.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

But after returning home to find county and state officials passing anti-immigrant laws, she didn’t join the resistance, as many Latinos of that era did.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Talwani’s argument, in part, was that her order denying a pause would provide Justice Department officials the legal authority to continue litigating the case despite the shutdown.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Such promises came with no assurance the shirts were official and, more often than not, they weren't.

Read more on BBC

Mediators are discussing sending an initial group of 1,000 Palestinian police trained by Egypt and Jordan to help provide security in Gaza, Arab officials say.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• administrator 
• agent 
• bureaucrat 
• civil servant 
• commissioner 
• director 
• executive 
• leader 
• manager 
• minister 
• officer 
• representative 
• secretary