officiate

verb

of·​fi·​ci·​ate ə-ˈfi-shē-ˌāt 

officiated; officiating

intransitive verb

1

: to perform a ceremony, function, or duty

officiate at a wedding

2

: to act in an official capacity : act as an official (as at a sports contest)

transitive verb

1

: to carry out (an official duty or function)

2

: to serve as a leader or celebrant of (a ceremony)

3

: to administer the rules of (a game or sport) especially as a referee or umpire

officiation

ə-ˌfi-shē-ˈā-shən 

noun

Examples of officiate in a Sentence

The bishop officiated the memorial Mass.

Two referees officiated the hockey game.

Recent Examples on the Web

Referees never officiate on the same team in successive weeks and rarely twice in a month, and time is a great healer. — Graham Scott, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026

McCartney and Stevie Nicks attended and performed at the wedding while Adam Sandler officiated the ceremony. — Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2026

Western Michigan appeared to have won 12-7 after batting down a Hail Mary attempt as time expired; however, the officiating crew ruled that 1 second remained, allowing Michigan to convert a 47-yard Hail Mary as time expired. — Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 14 Sep. 2026

The nuptials were held at San Ysidro Ranch in Montecito, California, with Finneas’ younger sister, Billie Eilish, taking on the special role of officiating the ceremony. — Mitchell Peters, Billboard, 13 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin officiātus, past participle of officiāre "to perform a function, perform priestly duties," going back to Late Latin officiārī "to perform a function," derivative of Latin officium "duty, office"

First Known Use

1623, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Rhymes for officiate

• abdicate
• abrogate
• acetate
• activate
• actuate
• aggravate
• agitate
• alginate
• alienate
• allocate
• amputate
• angulate

Kids Definition

officiate

verb

of·​fi·​ci·​ate ə-ˈfish-ē-ˌāt 

officiated; officiating

1

: to perform a ceremony

officiate at a wedding

2

: to act as an officer

officiated at the annual meeting

3

: to enforce the rules of (a game or sport)

officiate a soccer match