employ

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verb em·ploy \ im-ˈplȯi , em- \

Definition of employ

transitive verb

1 a :to make use of (someone or something inactive)

employ a pen for sketching

b :to use (something, such as time) advantageously

a job that employed her skills

c (1) :to use or engage the services of

(2) :to provide with a job that pays wages or a salary

2 :to devote to or direct toward a particular activity or person

employed all her energies to help the poor

—

employer

noun

See employ defined for English-language learners

See employ defined for kids

Examples of employ in a Sentence

The company is accused of employing questionable methods to obtain the contract.
You should find better ways to employ your time.
I had to employ a lawyer to review the contract.
It's a small company, employing a staff of only 20.

Recent Examples of employ from the Web

The number of operational smelters in the U.S., down from 23 in 1993 The number of workers once employed at smelters in the Pacific Northwest, which at one time produced 40 percent of the nation’s aluminum.

— paul roberts, The Seattle Times, "Wenatchee waits and wonders about aluminum smelter’s future," 26 Aug. 2017
Apple employs more than 1,000 workers in Ohio, mostly at eight retail stores throughout the state, including at Kenwood Towne Centre.

— alexander coolidge, Cincinnati.com, "Apple CEO Tim Cook in Cincinnati: Local firm inspires 'the next thing'," 24 Aug. 2017
The Treasury Department, which is already employing extraordinary measures to avoid a default, hasn’t said exactly when the final deadline is for raising the debt limit.

— anna edgerton, Bloomberg.com, "House Conservatives Split Over Debt Ceiling," 18 Aug. 2017
Geneva County Superintendent Becky Birdsong said Danielle Earls served with the system for a half-day this month and was employed last year as a Pre-K aide through a contracting agency.

— william thornton wthornton@al.com, AL.com, "Geneva County Schools removes substitute over racial Facebook post," 17 Aug. 2017
Virtue, a hairbcare line that employs the use of human keratin, has hit that sweet spot for me.

— ashley weatherford, The Cut, "The Best New Shampoo Is Made From Human Hair," 15 Aug. 2017
The administration still employs Kris Kobach for the purpose of suppressing minority voters.

— charles p. pierce, Esquire, "This Is the Bleakest Moment for America in My Lifetime," 13 Aug. 2017
Some operations even employ a digital drain camera on the end of a gigantic reel of fiber-optic cable.

— roy berendsohn, Popular Mechanics, "How to Unclog a French Drain," 6 Aug. 2017
Forty-five firefighters employed 19 vehicles and pieces of apparatus in extinguishing fires early Wednesday evening at two neighboring houses on Naperville's far northeast side.

— bill bird, Naperville Sun, "45 firefighters quell 2 blazes at neighboring homes in Naperville," 2 Aug. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'employ.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of employ

Middle English emploien, from Anglo-French empleier, emploier, emplier to entangle, apply, make use of, from Latin implicare to enfold, involve, from in- + plicare to fold — more at ply

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

employ Synonyms

Synonyms

assume, engage, fee [chiefly Scottish], hire, lay on [chiefly British], pay, place, recruit, retain, sign (up or on), take on

Antonyms

ax (or axe), can, discharge, dismiss, fire, sack

Related Words

reemploy, reengage, rehire; apprentice, contract, job, partner, subcontract; enlist; advance, promote, upgrade; keep (on); headhunt, scout

Near Antonyms

furlough, lay off, lock out

Synonym Discussion of employ

use, employ, utilize mean to put into service especially to attain an end. use implies availing oneself of something as a means or instrument to an end.

- willing to use any means to achieve her ends

employ suggests the use of a person or thing that is available but idle, inactive, or disengaged.

- looking for better ways to employ their skills

utilize may suggest the discovery of a new, profitable, or practical use for something.

- an old wooden bucket utilized as a planter

Other Business Terms

amortize, caveat emptor, clearinghouse, divest, due diligence, emolument, green-collar, marque, overhead, perquisite

employ

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noun em·ploy \ im-ˈplȯi , ˈim-ˌplȯi , ˈem-ˌplȯi \

Definition of employ

1 a :use, purpose

b :occupation, job

2 :the state of being employed

in the city's employ

See employ defined for English-language learners

Examples of employ in a Sentence

while you're under our employ, you can't do outside work for our competitors

Recent Examples of employ from the Web

Ansel Elgort plays the title character, a youthful but skilled wheel man in the employ of Doc (Kevin Spacey), a crime kingpin of sorts and the organizer of big bank heists .

— mark rapp, cleveland.com, "Movie capsules for Aug. 25: "Logan Lucky" & More," 24 Aug. 2017
Priebus and former White House press secretary Sean Spicer have refused to say a bad word about the president since leaving his employ.

— callum borchers, Washington Post, "Anthony Scaramucci was remarkably candid with Stephen Colbert," 15 Aug. 2017
An actual University of Arkansas professor was misidentified from a photo yesterday, and a Change.org petition had to retract its call to have said employee removed from its employ.

— angela helm, The Root, "#MaskOff: Social Media Exposes Racists from Charlottesville, Va., White Supremacist Rally," 13 Aug. 2017
Locher left Gould's employ in 1961 and eventually headed an art studio in Oak Brook called Novamark.

— bob goldsborough, chicagotribune.com, "Dick Locher, Pulitzer Prize-winning Tribune cartoonist, dies at 88," 7 Aug. 2017
As for the hacking allegations, in February, Songkick alleged that an ex-employee had accessed confidential company information while under the employ of Ticketmaster and shared it with the company’s top executives.

— dave brooks, Billboard, "Songkick's Legal Showdown With Ticketmaster Looms, Following Asset Sell-Off," 19 July 2017
To spend a day with him is to run into all kinds of New Orleans characters who happen to be in his employ, from young artists working on new screenprinting techniques to polished business types like McSpadden.

— brett anderson, NOLA.com, "James Michalopoulos, the artist as epicure, distiller: from the archive," 6 July 2017
Baby (Ansel Elgort) really is a driver — more specifically, a getaway driver, in the service/fealty/employ of an aphorism-spouting criminal mastermind played by Kevin Spacey.

— chris foran, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "New movies in Milwaukee: 'Band Aid,' 'Beatriz at Dinner,' 'Tubelight' and, soon, 'Baby Driver'," 22 June 2017
Wind and solar combined employ almost 400,000 today, and the number is growing exponentially at more than 50,000 new jobs per year.

— steve butler, The Mercury News, "Butler: The sun shines on investors who saw the light," 11 May 2017

First Known Use of employ

1679

employ Synonyms

Synonyms

hire, employment, engagement

Antonyms

joblessness, nonemployment, unemployment

Related Words

appointment, assignment, conscription, enlistment, recruitment; incumbency, tenure; occupation, place, position, post, situation, work

Near Antonyms

boot, discharge, dismissal, firing, removal, sack, severance; demotion, suspension; furlough, layoff, leave, liberty, retirement

Other Business Terms

amortize, caveat emptor, clearinghouse, divest, due diligence, emolument, green-collar, marque, overhead, perquisite

EMPLOY Defined for English Language Learners

employ

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verb

Definition of employ for English Language Learners

: to use (something) for a particular purpose or to do something
: to use or direct (something, such as your time or effort) in order to achieve a particular goal
: to use or get the services of (someone) to do a particular job

EMPLOY Defined for Kids

employ

play

verb em·ploy \ im-ˈplȯi \

Definition of employ for Students

employed; employing

1 :to give a job to :use the services of

The company employs over 500 workers.

2 :to make use of

They employ traditional methods of farming.

employ

noun

Definition of employ for Students

:the state of being hired for a job by

The gentleman is in the employ of a large bank.

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See words that rhyme with employ Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for employ Spanish Central: Translation of employ Nglish: Translation of employ for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of employ for Arabic speakers

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employ

Definition of employ

employer

From the M-W Editors

Examples of employ in a Sentence

Recent Examples of employ from the Web

Origin and Etymology of employ

employ Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Related Words

Near Antonyms

Synonym Discussion of employ

Other Business Terms

employ

Definition of employ

Examples of employ in a Sentence

Recent Examples of employ from the Web

First Known Use of employ

employ Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Related Words

Near Antonyms

Other Business Terms

Phrases Related to EMPLOY

Related Phrases

EMPLOY Defined for English Language Learners

employ

Definition of employ for English Language Learners

EMPLOY Defined for Kids

employ

Definition of employ for Students

employ

Definition of employ for Students

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