roster

noun

ros·​ter ˈrä-stər 

also ˈrȯ-

or ˈrō-

1

a

: a roll or list of personnel

b

: such a list giving the order in which a duty is to be performed

a duty roster

c

: the persons listed on a roster

2

: an itemized list

Synonyms of roster

• list
• listing

Examples of roster in a Sentence

His name has been added to the team roster.

The team has a roster of 40 players.

Recent Examples on the Web

The episode was headlined by a singles match between Swerve Strickland and Kevin Knight, pitting two of the roster’s most talented babyfaces against one another. —Rob Wolkenbrod, Forbes.com, 22 Jan. 2026

Auditors say the shortfall can be explained by the district's staffing roster missing dozens of employees and their salaries, as well as years of over-reliance on state COVID funding, which has run dry. —Ali Bauman, CBS News, 22 Jan. 2026

One misnomer to Indiana’s success it that its roster is a result of tens of millions of NIL dollars spent by desperate donors, namely IU alum and former Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban. —Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Jan. 2026

While left fielder Andrew Benintendi returns along with versatile Brooks Baldwin, the remainder of the outfielders listed on the 40-man roster are Derek Hill, who joined the club in late September, and newcomers Everson Pereira and Tristan Peters. —Lamond Pope, Chicago Tribune, 21 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Dutch rooster, literally, gridiron; from the parallel lines

First Known Use

1727, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for roster

• coster
• zoster
• exhauster
• imposter
• impostor

Kids Definition

roster

noun

ros·​ter ˈräs-tər 

: a list usually of people belonging to some group