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

Williams’ decision to leave the position was a big surprise to the mayor, commissioners and residents, though her departure followed months of controversy and scrutiny. — Amanda Rosa, Miami Herald, 3 July 2026

The seat is held by Republican Tony Tinderholt, who announced his retirement in June 2025 and is now a candidate for Tarrant County commissioner. — Kamal Morgan, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 July 2026

The decision voided the FTC's provision that commissioners could be removed by a president only for cause, and not because of their political affiliations. — Dan Mangan,luke Fountain,kevin Breuninger,garrett Downs,ashley Capoot,justin Papp, CNBC, 2 July 2026

But both Mamdani and his police commissioner have repeatedly refused to discuss the nature of the event — angering some nearby business owners and raising questions about the use of public resources to cover private security. — Jake Offenhartz, Fortune, 2 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