roster

[ros-ter]

noun

1. a list of persons or groups, as of military personnel or units with their turns or periods of duty.

   Synonyms: record, panel, slate, listing

2. any list, roll, or register.

   a roster of famous scientists; a roster of coming events.

   Synonyms: record, panel, slate, listing

roster

¹

/ ˈrɒstə /

noun

1. a list or register, esp one showing the order of people enrolled for duty

2. marketing the list of advertising agencies regularly used by a particular company

verb

1. (tr) to place on a roster

roster

²

/ ˈrɒstə /

noun

1. dialect,  a rascal

Word History and Origins

Origin of roster¹

1720–30; < Dutch rooster list, roster, literally, gridiron, in reference to the ruled paper used, equivalent to roost ( en ) to roast + -er -er ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of roster¹

C18: from Dutch rooster grating or list (the lined paper looking like a grid)

Example Sentences

The budget for players was rigid, the people familiar with the matter said, sometimes to the point that the Blue Jays were unable to complete even small deals to improve their roster.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Six players remain on the roster who were part of the Austin team that reached the Western Conference Final in 2022, when they were eliminated by LAFC, so this series represents a rematch for them.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The minutes of that July 11, 2022, meeting as well as a listing for the meeting are missing from the Council website, which otherwise contains a full roster of 2022 Council gatherings.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The Dodgers committed a combined $85 million to the two relievers and neither of them is even on the roster.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The charity has just reopened its services in Meir, putting them up to 16 sites across the city by adding Broadway Methodist church to the roster.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• agenda 
• inventory 
• record 
• schedule 
• table 

When To Use

What does roster mean?

A roster is a list or register of people or things.Roster is perhaps most commonly used to refer to the official list of players on a sports team, but it can refer to many other things, including lists of military personnel and lists of academic classes.Example: We have spots on our roster for 26 players.