employ

play

verb em·ploy \im-ˈplȯi, em-\

Definition of employ

transitive verb
1a : to make use of (someone or something inactive) employ a pen for sketchingb : to use (something, such as time) advantageously a job that employed her skillsc (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

Georgia-Pacific also paid out generous dividends to shareholders, a common practice that public companies employ to make their shares more enticing.

— christopher leonard, chicagotribune.com, "A look at how Koch does business", 5 July 2017
Chinese social media platforms employ thousands of people to scrub posts off their sites if they are been deemed to violate censorship demands.

— kaweewit kaewjinda, The Seattle Times, "Thai reform body suggests tight regulations on social media", 4 July 2017
CSC employs 900 locally, a total of 2,600 worldwide, and claims a close working relationship with the government of what Ralph Nader once called the Company State.

— joseph n. distefano, Philly.com, "Delaware lauds, boosts taxes on its 'golden goose'", 3 July 2017
Highland resident Gene Hermann was living in Robertsdale at the time, and was employed as a laborer at the refinery.

— sue ellen ross, Post-Tribune, "New book captures details of 1955 Whiting refinery explosion", 30 June 2017
The law would also allow registered nurses employed by home health care agencies to destroy unused prescription medications.

— nicholas rondinone, courant.com, "Malloy Signs Opioid Bill Into Law", 30 June 2017
Banner Health, a large integrated health service employing or affiliated with 9,000 doctors, monitors its online reviews through Reputation.com of Redwood City, Calif.

— shirley s. wang, WSJ, "What Doctors Are Doing About Bad Reviews Online", 25 June 2017
A mix of volunteers and paid medics employed by the various fire and EMS companies provide the service now.

— david anderson, The Aegis, "Contracts OK'd to start transition to paid, county EMS", 23 June 2017
Only 31 percent of law school deans are women, while just 25 percent of Fortune 500 companies employ women as general counsel.

— molly knight, Marie Claire, "Are Women Equal in America? A Look At Title IX's Impact 45 Years Later", 23 June 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!

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

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

play

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

Definition of employ

1a : use, purposeb : 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

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
Thanks to California’s Home Care Service Bureau, all the caregivers Seniors Helping Seniors employs are background checked and fingerprinted by the state and the business is licensed as an official home care business.

— emily sorensen, Pomerado News, "Seniors Helping Seniors provides care, companionship", 4 May 2017
The companies that Sweden’s private equity industry invests in employ some 200,000 people in a country of about 10 million.

— niclas rolander, Bloomberg.com, "Why Sweden Killed the Carried Interest Tax Break: QuickTake Q&A", 4 May 2017
While in Mr. Knott’s employ, Watt is repeatedly confounded by the duties he is asked to manage.

— jon michaud, The New Yorker, "The Alternative Facts of Samuel Beckett’s “Watt”", 3 May 2017
Though Mr. Cotton was probably most celebrated for his work in the employ of others, his career as a bandleader, and as a dynamic showman known to do back flips onstage, proved to have greater longevity, spanning nearly half a century.

— bill friskics-warren, New York Times, "James Cotton, Blues Harmonica Legend, Dies at 81", 16 Mar. 2017

First Known Use of employ

1679

Other Business Terms

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

EMPLOY Defined for English Language Learners

employ

play

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.