5 definitions found

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

office

noun

1: place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed; "he rented an office in the new building" [syn: {business office}]

2: an administrative unit of government; "the Central Intelligence Agency"; "the Census Bureau"; "Office of Management and Budget"; "Tennessee Valley Authority" [syn: {agency}, {federal agency}, {government agency}, {bureau}, {authority}]

3: the actions and activities assigned to or required or expected of a person or group; "the function of a teacher"; "the government must do its part"; "play its role" [syn: {function}, {part}, {role}]

4: (of a government or government official) holding an office means being in power; "being in office already gives a candidate a great advantage"; "during his first year in office"; "during his first year in power"; "the power of the president" [syn: {power}]

5: professional or clerical workers in an office; "the whole office was late the morning of the blizzard" [syn: {office staff}]

6: a religious rite or service prescribed by ecclesiastical authorities; "the offices of the mass"

7: a job in an organization; "he occupied a post in the treasury" [syn: {position}, {post}, {berth}, {spot}, {billet}, {place}, {situation}]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:

Office \Of'fice\, verb (used with an object) To perform, as the duties of an office; to discharge. [Obs.] --Shak.

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:

Office \Of"fice\, noun [F., fr. L. officium, for opificium; ops ability, wealth, help + facere to do or make. See {Opulent}, {Fact}.]

1. That which a person does, either voluntarily or by appointment, for, or with reference to, others; customary duty, or a duty that arises from the relations of man to man; as, kind offices, pious offices.

I would I could do a good office between you. --Shak.

2. A special duty, trust, charge, or position, conferred by authority and for a public purpose; a position of trust or authority; as, an executive or judical office; a municipal office.

3. A charge or trust, of a sacred nature, conferred by God himself; as, the office of a priest under the old dispensation, and that of the apostles in the new.

Inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office. --Rom. xi. 13.

4. That which is performed, intended, or assigned to be done, by a particular thing, or that which anything is fitted to perform; a function; -- answering to duty in intelligent beings.

They [the eyes] resign their office and their light. --Shak.

Hesperus, whose office is to bring Twilight upon the earth. --Milton.

In this experiment the several intervals of the teeth of the comb do the office of so many prisms. --Sir I. Newton.

5. The place where any kind of business or service for others is transacted; a building, suite of rooms, or room in which public officers or workers in any organization transact business; as, the register's office; a lawyer's office; the doctor's office; the Mayor's office. [1913 Webster +PJC]

6. The company or corporation, or persons collectively, whose place of business is in an office; as, I have notified the office.

7. pl. The apartments or outhouses in which the domestics discharge the duties attached to the service of a house, as kitchens, pantries, stables, etc. [Eng.]

As for the offices, let them stand at distance. --Bacon.

8. (Eccl.) Any service other than that of ordination and the Mass; any prescribed religious service.

This morning was read in the church, after the office was done, the declaration setting forth the late conspiracy against the king's person. --Evelyn.

{Holy office}. Same as {Inquisition}, noun, 3.

{Houses of office}. Same as def. 7 above. --Chaucer.

{Little office} (R. C. Ch.), an office recited in honor of the Virgin Mary.

{Office bearer}, an officer; one who has a specific office or duty to perform.

{Office copy} (Law), an authenticated or certified copy of a record, from the proper office. See {Certified copies}, under {Copy}. --Abbott.

{Office-found} (Law), the finding of an inquest of office. See under {Inquest}.

{Office holder}. See {Officeholder} in the Vocabulary

{Office hours}. the hours of the day during which business is transacted at an office[5].

{Office seeker}. a person who is attempting to get elected to an elected office, or to get an appointment to an appointive public office. [1913 Webster +PJC]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

284 Moby Thesaurus words for "office": Mass, act of grace, act of kindness, advice, advocacy, aegis, agency, agentship, aid, alerting, appointment, area, assignment, assistance, atelier, auspices, authority, authorization, baccalaureate service, backhouse, backing, backup, bailiwick, bedtime prayer, benefaction, benefit, benevolence, benignity, berth, billet, bit, blessing, booking office, box office, branch, branch office, brevet, bureau, business, cabinet, camp meeting, capacity, care, caution, celebration, ceremonial, ceremony, chambers, chancellery, chancery, character, charge, chore, church, church service, closet, clue, comfort, commencement, commissariat, commission, commissioning, commitment, company, compline, connection, consignment, constablery, constablewick, constabulary, consulate, convocation, corporate headquarters, corporation, courtesy, crapper, cue, cure, delegated authority, delegation, den, department, deputation, devolution, devolvement, devotions, divine service, division, duty, ease, embassy, employment, empowerment, empty formality, end use, engagement, entrusting, entrustment, errand, establishment, evening devotions, evensong, executive office, executorship, exequatur, exercise, exercises, factorship, favor, firm, form, form of worship, formal, formality, formula, formulary, full power, function, gig, good deed, good offices, good turn, grace, graduation, graduation exercises, headquarters, help, holy rite, home office, house, immediate purpose, inaugural, inauguration, incumbency, indulgence, initiation, institution, intercession, intermediation, jakes, job, jurisdiction, kind deed, kind offices, kindly act, kindness, labor of love, lauds, legation, library, license, lieutenancy, liturgy, lob, loft, main office, mandate, matins, mediation, meeting, mercy, ministration, ministry, mission, mitzvah, mode of worship, monition, moonlighting, morning devotions, mummery, municipality, mystery, necessary, night song, none, nones, novena, obligation, observance, occupation, offices, opening, operation, operational purpose, order of worship, ordinance, organization, outhouse, part, passing word, patronage, performance, place, plenipotentiary power, pointer, position, post, power of attorney, power to act, practice, praise meeting, prayer, prayer meeting, prayers, prescribed form, prime, prime song, procuration, protection, province, proxy, public worship, purpose, purview, regency, regentship, relief, religious ceremony, remedy, rescue, responsibility, revival, revival meeting, rite, rite de passage, rite of passage, ritual, ritual observance, rituality, role, room, sacrament, sacramental, sail loft, second job, secretariat, section, service, sext, sheriffalty, sheriffwick, shop, shrievalty, shtick, situation, solemnity, solemnization, spot, stacks, station, steer, studio, study, succor, support, task, tent meeting, tenure, therapy, thing, ticket office, tierce, tip, tip-off, trust, trusteeship, turn, ultimate purpose, undersong, use, vacancy, vesper, vespers, vicarious authority, vigils, warning, warrant, watch meeting, watch night, watch-night service, whisper, work, workplace, workroom

From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (27 SEP 03) [foldoc]:

Office {Microsoft Office}
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