officiate

O1F4F4I1C3I1A1T1E1
/əˈfɪ.ʃi.eɪt/

verb

To perform the functions of some office.

“She officiated the wedding as registrar.”

Similar
function
OriginLatin officiātus ← Late Latin officior ← Medieval Latin officiō →
UncommonFirst used 1615Scrabble 17
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

verbofficiate (third-person singular simple present officiates, present participle officiating, simple past and past participle officiated)

present singular third person officiates · participle present officiating · participle past officiated · past officiated

  1. intransitivetransitiveTo perform the functions of some office.First known use 1615

    She officiated the wedding as registrar.

    1 more example

    She officiated as registrar at the wedding.

  2. intransitivetransitivehobbiesTo serve as umpire or referee.First known use 1884

    He's never officiated a cup-final before.

    1 more example

    This is the second time he has officiated at a cup-final.

nounofficiate (plural officiates)

plural officiates

  1. rareA person appointed to office, an official.

Synonyms & antonyms

verbperform duties attached to a particular office or place or function

Similar
function
Broader
serve
Also see
function

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Medieval Latinofficiātus“monk in charge of a monastic office, official (start of 12th c., 14th in British sources)”
  2. Latinofficium“official duty, service”
  3. Medieval Latinofficiō“to officiate, say mass (9th cent.); to serve a church (13th cent.); to serve (early 13th c., 14th in British sources); to discharge an office (14th c.)”
  4. Late Latinofficior“to perform a function”
  5. Latinofficiātus
  6. Englishofficiate

Borrowed from Latin officiātus, perfect participle of Late Latin officior (“to perform a function”) and of Medieval Latin officiō (“to officiate, say mass (9th cent.); to serve a church (13th cent.); to serve (early 13th c., 14th in British sources); to discharge an office (14th c.)”), from Latin officium (“official duty, service”), see -ate (verb-forming suffix). The noun is derived from Medieval Latin officiātus (“monk in charge of a monastic office, official (start of 12th c., 14th in British sources)”), substantivized from the participle, see -ate (noun-forming suffix).

More words from Latin, Late Latin, Medieval Latin

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian изпълнявам задължения, съдия съм
  • изпълнявам задължения (izpălnjavam zadălženija)to perform the functions of some office
  • съдия съм (sădija săm)to serve as umpire or referee
Finnish toimittaa
  • toimittaato perform the functions of some office
German amtieren
  • amtierento perform the functions of some office
Polish przewodniczyć, pełnić obowiązki
  • przewodniczyćto perform the functions of some office
  • pełnić obowiązkito perform the functions of some office
  • sędziowaćto serve as umpire or referee
Russian исполнять обязанности
  • исполнять обязанности (ispolnjatʹ objazannosti)to perform the functions of some office
Spanish oficiar
  • oficiarto perform the functions of some office
Swedish döma
  • dömato serve as umpire or referee
Cite this entry
APA

officiate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/officiate

MLA

“officiate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/officiate. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “officiate,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/officiate.

Source: officiate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.