commissioner

noun

com·​mis·​sion·​er kə-ˈmi-sh(ə-)nər 

: a person with a commission: such as

a

: a member of a commission

b

: the representative of the governmental authority in a district, province, or other unit often having both judicial and administrative powers

c

: the officer in charge of a department or bureau of the public service

d

: the administrative head of a professional sport

commissionership

kə-ˈmi-sh(ə-)nər-ˌship 

noun

Examples of commissioner in a Sentence

The baseball commissioner decided to suspend the players for 10 games.

Recent Examples on the Web

In June, a motion to list Madison Heights I and II for sale failed when the housing authority's board deadlocked, 2-2, with one commissioner absent. —Joseph Flaherty, Arkansas Online, 17 Nov. 2025

College athletics have always been a business, no matter the tales of educational opportunity that athletic directors and conference commissioners preached about appropriate compensation for athletes. —Noah White, Miami Herald, 14 Nov. 2025

Local police deputy commissioner, Sambhaji Kadam, said the accident occurred after the brakes on the truck failed while descending a steep slope on the highway, according to the Hindustan Times. —Becca Longmire, PEOPLE, 14 Nov. 2025

In June, Tarrant County commissioners approved a map that will redraw two voting precincts. —Kamal Morgan, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, "person empowered to carry out defined duties," borrowed from Anglo-French, borrowed from Medieval Latin commissiōnārius, from commissiōn-, commissiō commission entry 1 + Latin -ārius -ary entry 1

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing commissioner

• high commissioner
• resident commissioner

Kids Definition

commissioner

noun

com·​mis·​sion·​er kə-ˈmish-(ə-)nər 

1

: a member of a commission

2

: an official in charge of a government department

Police Commissioner

Legal Definition

commissioner

noun

com·​mis·​sion·​er

: a person with a commission: as

a

: a member of a commission

b

often capitalized : the officer in charge of a government agency

a police commissioner