staff
1a group of persons, as employees, charged with carrying out the work of an establishment or executing some undertaking.
a group of assistants to a manager, superintendent, or executive.
a member of a staff.
Military.
a body of officers without command authority, appointed to assist a commanding officer.
the parts of any army concerned with administrative matters, planning, etc., rather than with actual participation in combat.
those members of an organization serving only in an auxiliary or advisory capacity on a given project.: Compare line1 (def. 38).
a stick, pole, or rod for aid in walking or climbing, for use as a weapon, etc.
a rod or wand serving as a symbol of office or authority, as a crozier, baton, truncheon, or mace.
a pole on which a flag is hung or displayed.
something that supports or sustains.
Also stave .Music. a set of horizontal lines, now five in number, with the corresponding four spaces between them, on which music is written.
Archaic. the shaft of a spear, lance, etc.
of or relating to a military or organizational staff: a staff officer; staff meetings.
(of a professional person) employed on the staff of a corporation, publication, institution, or the like rather than being self-employed or practicing privately: a staff writer; staff physicians at the hospital.
to provide with a staff of assistants or workers: She staffed her office with excellent secretaries.
to serve on the staff of.
to send to a staff for study or further work (often followed by out): The White House will staff out the recommendations before making a decision.
to hire employees, as for a new office or project (sometimes followed by up): Next month we'll begin staffing up for the reelection campaign.
Origin of staff
1Grammar notes for staff
Other words from staff
- staffless, adjective
- un·staffed, adjective
- well-staffed, adjective
Words that may be confused with staff
- staff , staph
Other definitions for staff (2 of 2)
a composition of plaster and fibrous material used for a temporary finish and in ornamental work, as on exposition buildings.
Origin of staff
2Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use staff in a sentence
Our layoffs were in April and involved the part-time staff in visitor services.
What should worry us is if we start to see infection rates among staff or students that are higher than in the surrounding community.
Schools are not spreading covid-19. This new data explains why. | Emily Oster | November 20, 2020 | Washington PostOnce these figures are plotted, we can see that, for high-school students and staff, the rates are similar to population case rates.
Schools are not spreading covid-19. This new data explains why. | Emily Oster | November 20, 2020 | Washington PostMembers of the Cardinals’ medical staff worked on Murray’s shoulder while he was on the sideline throughout the game.
Kyler Murray runs out of miracles as Seahawks hang on to take over first place in NFC West | Mark Maske | November 20, 2020 | Washington PostOn Thursday, Superintendent Francisco Durán sent a message to families and staff apologizing for the incident.
Virginia chemistry teacher asked students to insert ‘neon . . . neck’ to describe how George Floyd died | Hannah Natanson | November 19, 2020 | Washington Post
As a result, training squadrons—called Formal Training Units (FTU)—are being staffed with less than half the people they need.
Exclusive: U.S. Drone Fleet at ‘Breaking Point,’ Air Force Says | Dave Majumdar | January 5, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTSarbast Baiperi and local KDP offiials, in their own defense, say they were ill prepared, under-supplied and under-staffed.
How the U.S.-favored Kurds Abandoned the Yazidis when ISIS Attacked | Christine van den Toorn | August 17, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAnd, in fact, the embassy has not been fully staffed since the Benghazi attack.
U.S. Diplomats and Marines Close Embassy and Flee Libya Fighting | Jamie Dettmer | July 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAnd near Boise, he adds, that means many fire towers are still staffed by human observers.
Fighting Wildfire With Satellites, Lasers, and Drones | Elizabeth Lopatto | July 9, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIt seemed the party, which is mainly staffed by volunteers, was starting to crack under the pressure of the media glare.
Is Britain’s Tea Party Turning Politics Upside Down? | Nico Hines | April 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTHence Wheel Five had been built and was staffed by research men who were rotated at regular eight-month intervals.
The Stars, My Brothers | Edmond HamiltonThree days later, after passing up three farms that unfortunately were staffed with lady dogs, Sue approached a fourth.
The Duck-footed Hound | James Arthur KjelgaardThe magistrate, moreover, seemed to know the silver-staffed gentleman very well, and greeted him cordially.
Memoirs of Joseph Grimaldi | Joseph GrimaldiThey ran a hospital in Calais staffed by themselves for nurses and with Belgian doctors and orderlies.
The Sword of Deborah | F. Tennyson JesseThe largest was made up of apartments for individual patients, and staffed by nurses and attendants.
This Crowded Earth | Robert Bloch
British Dictionary definitions for staff (1 of 2)
/ (stɑːf) /
a group of people employed by a company, individual, etc, for executive, clerical, sales work, etc
(modifier) attached to or provided for the staff of an establishment: a staff doctor
the body of teachers or lecturers of an educational institution, as distinct from the students
the officers appointed to assist a commander, service, or central headquarters organization in establishing policy, plans, etc
a stick with some special use, such as a walking stick or an emblem of authority
something that sustains or supports: bread is the staff of life
a pole on which a flag is hung
mainly British a graduated rod used in surveying, esp for sighting to with a levelling instrument: Usual US name: rod
Also called: stave music
the system of horizontal lines grouped into sets of five (four in the case of plainsong) upon which music is written. The spaces between them are also used, being employed in conjunction with a clef in order to give a graphic indication of pitch
any set of five lines in this system together with its clef: the treble staff
(tr) to provide with a staff
Origin of staff
1British Dictionary definitions for staff (2 of 2)
/ (stɑːf) /
US a mixture of plaster and hair used to cover the external surface of temporary structures and for decoration
Origin of staff
2Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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