employee

noun

em·ploy·ee | \ im-ˌplȯ(i)-ˈē

, (ˌ)em-; im-ˈplȯ(i)-ˌē, em-

variants: or less commonly employe

Definition of employee

: one employed by another usually for wages or salary and in a position below the executive level

Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Learn More about employee

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Synonyms & Antonyms for employee

Synonyms

hand, hireling, jobholder, retainer, worker

Antonyms

employer, gaffer [British]

Examples of employee in a Sentence

A good boss listens to his employees. The company has more than 2,000 employees worldwide.

Recent Examples on the Web

Parachute's mission to give back to the community is still extremely important to them in India, and the brand partnered with a manufacturer that will be providing education for their employees' children and job opportunities for their spouses. — Elizabeth Gulino, House Beautiful, "Parachute Has Just Launched Swoon-Worthy Handwoven Rugs," 7 Mar. 2019 Taylor Jewell/Invision/AP/REX/Shutterstock The Shade Room hired its first employee, a writer, in 2015 and moved into an office in 2017. — Kara Brown, Marie Claire, "Our Lady of Shade," 1 Mar. 2019 Under pressure from employees last year, Alphabet Inc.’s Google unit opted not to renew its contract for the Pentagon’s Project Maven, which used artificial intelligence to review video images to identify potential drone targets. — Doug Cameron, WSJ, "Pentagon Drafts Artificial Intelligence to Fight Wildfires," 12 Feb. 2019 Back in November, the Trump administration released two final rules that would give employers much more room to exempt themselves from providing birth control to their employees at no out-of-pocket cost. — Sarah Jacoby, SELF, "A Federal Judge Blocked the Trump Administration's New Birth Control Rules in 13 States and D.C.," 14 Jan. 2019 Thirty-one other Samsung executives face trial alongside Lee for threatening to cut wages from employees and withdraw business from subcontractors that supported unionization. — Dan Seifert, The Verge, "The Verge 2018 tech report card: Samsung," 26 Dec. 2018 The robots will require initial assistance from employees. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Walmart Buys Over 300 Aisle-Cleaning Robots," 6 Dec. 2018 In a message to parents, the Oakland Unified School District said schools will remain open, staffed by non-union employees and substitute teachers. — Jocelyn Gecker, The Seattle Times, "Oakland teachers to walk off the job Thursday," 20 Feb. 2019 About 420,000 government employees are already working without pay, and 380,000 are on unpaid leave, according to earlier reporting by the Wall Street Journal. — Erica Gonzales, Harper's BAZAAR, "Cardi B's Impassioned Government Shutdown Video Even Had Lawmakers Talking," 17 Jan. 2019

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

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Dictionary Entries near employee

employer's liability insurance

employers' association

Statistics for employee

Last Updated

15 Mar 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for employee

The first known use of employee was in 1822

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More Definitions for employee

employee

noun

English Language Learners Definition of employee

: a person who works for another person or for a company for wages or a salary

See the full definition for employee in the English Language Learners Dictionary

employee

noun

em·ploy·ee | \ im-ˌplȯi-ˈē

Kids Definition of employee

: a person who is paid to work for another

employee

noun

em·ploy·ee

variants: also employe

Legal Definition of employee

: a person usually below the executive level who is hired by another to perform a service especially for wages or salary and is under the other's control — see also respondeat superior — compare independent contractor

Note: In determining whether an individual is an employee, courts look at several factors, including the nature of the compensation paid, provision for employee benefits, whether the hired party is in business, tax treatment of the hired party, source of the equipment used, and location of the work. Statutes, such as workers' compensation acts and labor laws, usually include a definition of employee as it is used in the statute.