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

On Tuesday, Tarrant County commissioners will revisit the issue. — Rachel Royster july 8, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 July 2026

The memo will be officially made public once it is sent to county commissioners this month, with a potential discussion slated for the board’s July 21 meeting. — Douglas Hanks, Miami Herald, 9 July 2026

Many dollars would filter down to the county agricultural commissioners and their staff who are the boots on the ground for pest containment efforts. — Lizzie Kane july 9, Sacbee.com, 9 July 2026

The Palm Beach County board of commissioners voted 4-3 to approve the licensing agreement in early May, after a meeting where members of the public spoke strongly in favor of and against the renaming. — Rachel Treisman, NPR, 9 July 2026

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

Rhymes for commissioner

• conditioner
• parishioner
• petitioner
• positioner
• practitioner
• missioner

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