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

Referee Natalie Sago became the third woman to officiate an NBA playoff game, working alongside Marc Davis and Nick Buchert. —CBS News, 24 Apr. 2026

Ace showed out in matches that followed International Table Tennis Federation rules and were officiated by licensed umpires. —Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2026

Whether the league responds to Booker’s complaints — or fines him for them — the conversation around officiating in this series is far from over. —Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 23 Apr. 2026

Brooks Brings Up Jordan and Questions Modern Officiating Brooks, who fouled out of Game 2 with 25 seconds remaining, took a different angle in his criticism — one aimed squarely at how the league officiated Gilgeous-Alexander’s style of play. —Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 23 Apr. 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
• adsorbate
• aggravate
• agitate
• alginate
• alienate
• allocate
• amputate

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