official

[ uh-fish-uhl ]
See synonyms for: officialofficialsofficially on Thesaurus.com

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.

  1. holding office.

  2. appointed or authorized to act in a designated capacity: an official representative.

  3. (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.

  4. 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.

Origin of official

1
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Late Latin officiālis “of duty,” equivalent to Latin offici(um) “service, duty” + -ālis adjective suffix; see origin at office, -al1

Other words from official

  • of·fi·cial·ly, adverb
  • non·of·fi·cial, adjective
  • non·of·fi·cial·ly, adverb
  • pre·of·fi·cial, adjective
  • pre·of·fi·cial·ly, adverb
  • pseu·do·of·fi·cial, adjective, noun
  • pseu·do·of·fi·cial·ly, adverb
  • qua·si-of·fi·cial, adjective
  • qua·si-of·fi·cial·ly, adverb
  • sub·of·fi·cial, noun, adjective
  • sub·of·fi·cial·ly, adverb
  • un·der·of·fi·cial, adjective
  • un·of·fi·cial, adjective
  • un·of·fi·cial·ly, adverb

Words that may be confused with official

Words Nearby official

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use official in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for official (1 of 2)

official

/ (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

  1. appointed by authority, esp for some special duty

  2. 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

British Dictionary definitions for Official (2 of 2)

Official

/ (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

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012