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personnel

[pur-suh-nel]
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noun
  1. a body of persons employed in an organization or place of work.
  2. (used with a plural verb) persons: All personnel are being given the day off.
  3. personnel department.
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Origin of personnel

1825–35; < French, noun use of personnel (adj.) personal < Late Latin persōnāle, neuter of persōnālis; replacing personal (noun), Anglicized form of French personnel; compare German Personal, variant of Personale, Italian personale. See matériel
Can be confusedpersonal personnel (see usage note at the current entry)

Usage note

2. Some usage guides object to the use of personnel as a plural. However, this use is well established and standard in all varieties of speech and writing. The use of personnel with a preceding number is largely restricted to business and government communications: Six personnel were transferred.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for personnels

personnel

noun
  1. the people employed in an organization or for a service or undertakingCompare materiel
    1. Also called: human resourcesthe office or department that interviews, appoints, or keeps records of employees
    2. (as modifier)a personnel officer
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Word Origin

C19: from French, ultimately from Late Latin persōnālis personal (adj); see person
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

Word Origin and History for personnels

personnel

n.

1837, from French personnel (a contrastive term to matériel), noun use of personnel (adj.) "personal," from Old French personel (see personal).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper