What does "employ" mean?
The state of being an employee; employment.
Employ
/ɪmˈplɔɪ/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The state of being an employee; employment.
- Grammar: employ is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: apply, use, utilize, engage.
- Useful contrasts: disused, superannuated, canning.
- Usage evidence: You must employ your capital well.
How to use "employ"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "employ" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "employ" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "employ" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "employ" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "employ" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "apply" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "employ", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The state of being an employee; employment.
"The school district has six thousand teachers in its employ."
- 2 the state of being employed or having a job wordnet
- 3 An occupation. archaic
"Still he wrote on. He was too much engrossed in his own charmed employ not to be insensible for a time to all external influences: he might suffer afterwards, but now his mind was his kingdom."
- 4 The act of employing someone or making use of something; employment. obsolete
"Notwithstanding the employ of general and local bleeding, blisters, &c., the patient died on the fourth day after entrance."
Verb
- 1 To retain (someone) as an employee.
"Our company employs hundreds of people."
- 2 put into service; make work or employ for a particular purpose or for its inherent or natural purpose wordnet
- 3 To provide (someone) with a new job; to hire. rare
"Yesterday our local garage employed a new mechanic."
- 4 engage or hire for work wordnet
- 5 To use (someone or something) for a job or task.
"The burglar employed a jemmy to get in."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 To make busy; to preoccupy.
"Let it not enter in your minde of loue: / Be merry, and imploy your chiefeſt thoughts / To courtſhip, and ſuch faire oſtents of loue / As ſhall conueniently become you there;"
Antonyms
Example
"You must employ your capital well."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "employ"?
Common synonyms include: apply, use, utilize, engage, hire, academic discipline approach.
How do you use "employ" in a sentence?
You must employ your capital well.
How do you pronounce "employ"?
Pronounced /ɪmˈplɔɪ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From late Middle English emploien, imploien, emplien (“to apply to a specific purpose”), from Anglo-Norman emploier, Old French emploiier (“to entangle, fabricate, to make use of”), ultimately from Latin implicāre (“to infold, entangle, involve, engage”), from in- (“in”) + plicāre (“to fold”). Doublet of imply and implicate.
Etymology 2
Borrowed from French emploi (“job, employment”), the deverbal from employer (“to put to use, to employ”), first attested in the late 17th century.