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

In 2008, Jones was issued a $25,000 penalty for publicly criticizing officiating in a game that didn’t even involve the Cowboys, instead between the Chargers and Broncos. —Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 Oct. 2025

The officiating crew decided to throw a flag for intentional grounding after all. —Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 6 Oct. 2025

Their nuptials were officiated by McKnight, while Sanchez's son, Daniel, served as both a groomsman and ring bearer. —Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 6 Oct. 2025

In particular, Petrie is close with his on-screen son and Barbie actor Swindells, and last year officiated his wedding to fellow thespian Amber Anderson. —Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 2025

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

• abbreviate
• accelerate
• accommodate
• accumulate
• acuminate
• adjudicate
• adulterate
• affiliate
• agglomerate
• agglutinate
• alleviate
• amalgamate

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