different between office vs post
office
English
Etymology
From Middle English office, from Old French office, from Latin officium (“personal, official, or moral duty; official position; function; ceremony, esp. last rites”), contracted from opificium (“construction: the act of building or the thing built”), from opifex (“doer of work, craftsman”) + -ium (“-y: forming actions”), from op- (“base of opus: work”) + -i- (“connective”) + -fex (“combining form of facere: to do, to make”).
Use in reference to office software is a genericization of various proprietary program suites, such as Microsoft Office.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /??f?s/
- (General American) IPA(key): /??f?s/
- (cot–caught merger, Canada) IPA(key): /??f?s/
- Hyphenation: of?fice
- Rhymes: -?f?s
Noun
office (plural offices)
- (religion) A ceremonial duty or service, particularly:
- 1535, Bible (Coverdale Bible), 1 Chron., 29:
- Golde (gaue he him)... for all maner of vessels of euery offyce.
- (Christianity) The authorized form of ceremonial worship of a church.
- (Christianity, obsolete) Mass, (particularly) the introit sung at its beginning.
- 1549, "Svpper of the Lorde" in The Book of Common Prayer, page 121:
- The office, or Introite, (as they call it).
- 1549, "Svpper of the Lorde" in The Book of Common Prayer, page 121:
- (Christianity) Any special liturgy, as the Office for the Dead or of the Virgin.
- (Christianity) A daily service without the eucharist.
- (Catholicism) The daily service of the breviary, the liturgy for each canonical hour, including psalms, collects, and lessons.
- In the Latin rite, all bishops, priests, and transitional deacons are obliged to recite the Divine Office daily.
- 1674, Richard Strange, The Life and Gests of S. Thomas Cantilupe, Bishop of Hereford, page 287:
- His spirituall exercises were chiefly Prayer, the H. Sacrifice of Masse, his Canonicall Houres or diuine Office.
- (Protestant) Various prayers used with modification as a morning or evening service.
- (Christianity) Last rites.
- 1582, Bible (Rheims), John, 12 (marginalia):
- The deuout offices of balming and anointing the dead bodies.
- 1618, S. Rowlands, Sacred Memorie, 37:
- To show their loue in this last office done
To a dead friend.
- To show their loue in this last office done
- 1822, Walter Scott, The Fortunes of Nigel, Vol. III, Ch. xi, page 318:
- I... will be first to render thee the decent offices due to the dead.
- 1582, Bible (Rheims), John, 12 (marginalia):
- 1535, Bible (Coverdale Bible), 1 Chron., 29:
- A position of responsibility.
- When the office of Secretary of State is vacant, its duties fall upon an official within the department.
- 1611, Bible (KJV), Epistle to the Romans, 11:13:
- ...in as much as I am the Apostle of the Gentiles, I magnifie mine office...
- 1787, United States Constitution, Article II, §1:
- I do solemnly swear... that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States."
- Official position, particularly high employment within government; tenure in such a position.
- She held office as secretary of state until she left office to run for office.
- c. 1605, William Shakespeare & al., The Life of Tymon of Athens, Act I, Scene ii, ll. 207 f.:
- Fla.... Well, would I were
Gently put out of Office, before I were forc'd out...
- Fla.... Well, would I were
- 1923, Rose Macaulay, Told by an Idiot, Act III, Scene xv, l. 227:
- The Tories had been in office ten years.
- (obsolete) An official or group of officials; (figuratively) a personification of officeholders.
- a. 1602, William Shakespeare, The Tragicall Historie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke, Act III, Scene i, ll. 1724 ff.:
- ...For who would beare...
The pangs of despiz'd loue, the lawes delay,
The insolence of office...
When he himselfe might his quietas make...
With a bare bodkin?
- ...For who would beare...
- a. 1625, John Fletcher & al., A Very Woman, Act III, Scene ii, ll. 36 ff.:
- Ped. Now Mr. Office:
What is the Reason that your vigilant Greatness
And your Wife's wonderful wiseness have lock'd up from me
The way to see my Mistress? Who's Dog's dead now,
That you observe these Vigils?
- Ped. Now Mr. Office:
- a. 1602, William Shakespeare, The Tragicall Historie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke, Act III, Scene i, ll. 1724 ff.:
- A duty, particularly owing to one's position or station; a charge, trust, or role; (obsolete, rare) moral duty.
- c. 1603, William Shakespeare, Measure for Measure, Act II, Scene ii, ll. 749 ff.:
- Ang.... Doe you your office, or giue vp your Place,
And you shall well be spar'd.
- Ang.... Doe you your office, or giue vp your Place,
- 1667, John Milton, Paradise Lost, Bk. ix:
- The sun was sunk, and after him the star
Hesperus, whose office is to bring
Twilight upon the earth...
- The sun was sunk, and after him the star
- 1811, Jane Austen, Sense and Sensibility, Vol. I, Ch. viii, page 87:
- A woman... might bring herself to submit to the offices of a nurse, for the sake of the provision and security of a wife.
- 1813, Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, page 144:
- […] there I readily engaged in the office of pointing out to my friend the certain evils of such a choice.
- c. 1603, William Shakespeare, Measure for Measure, Act II, Scene ii, ll. 749 ff.:
- (obsolete) The performance of a duty; an instance of performing a duty.
- 1535, Bible (Coverdale), 1 Kings, 10:5:
- Whan the Quene of riche Arabia sawe all the wyszdome of Salomon... & the offyces of his ministers, and their garmentes... she wondred exceadingly.
- 1693, John Dryden translating Juvenal as The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis, Ch. iii, page 41:
- At Rome (nor think me partial to the Poor)
All Offices of ours are out of Door.
- At Rome (nor think me partial to the Poor)
- 1535, Bible (Coverdale), 1 Kings, 10:5:
- (archaic) Function: anything typically done by or expected of something.
- 1704, Isaac Newton, Opticks:
- In this experiment the several intervals of the teeth of the comb do the office of so many prisms.
- 1813, Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, Vol. I, Ch. viii, page 76:
- I hope you saw her petticoat, six inches deep in mud,... and the gown which had been let down to hide it, not doing its office.
- 1971, John Needham, Science and Civilisation in China, Ch. iii, page 590:
- These ‘Pacific boom-lateens’... are believed to derive from a kind of sprit-sail... in which the upper sprit performs the office of a more or less aft-raking mast.
- 1704, Isaac Newton, Opticks:
- (obsolete) A bodily function, (particularly) urination and defecation; an act of urination or defecation.
- c. 1603, William Shakespeare, The Tragoedy of Othello, The Moore of Venice, Act III, Scene iv, ll. 2265 ff.:
- Cassio.... Whom I, with all the Office of my heart
Intirely honour...
- Cassio.... Whom I, with all the Office of my heart
- 1613, Samuel Purchas, Purchas, His Pilgrimage, page 623:
- Washing themselves, as they doe also after the offices of Nature.
- 1764 August 5, David Garrick, letter:
- I never, since I left England, till now, have regal'd Myself with a good house of Office... the holes in Germany are... too round, chiefly owing... to the broader bottoms of the Germans.
- 1823, Lord Byron, Don Juan, Canto XI, §xl, ll. 123 f.:
- The very clerks—those somewhat dirty springs
Of office, or the House of Office.
- The very clerks—those somewhat dirty springs
- c. 1603, William Shakespeare, The Tragoedy of Othello, The Moore of Venice, Act III, Scene iv, ll. 2265 ff.:
- (now usually in plural) A service, a kindness.
- The secretary prevailed at the negotiations through the good offices of the Freedonian ambassador.
- 1575, Elizabeth I, letter:
- ...which we have hitherto forborne to graunt... for the evell offices whiche her other Secretary did there.
- c. 1595,, William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King Richard the Second, Act II, Scene ii, ll. 1089 ff.:
- Bush. Thither will I with you, for little office
Will the hatefull commons perfourme for vs,
Except like curs to teare vs all to pieces...
- Bush. Thither will I with you, for little office
- 1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, Book I, Ch. xiii:
- One of the maxims which the devil, in a late visit upon earth, left to his disciples, is, when once you are got up, to kick the stool from under you. In plain English, when you have made your fortune by the good offices of a friend, you are advised to discard him as soon as you can.
- 1811, Jane Austen, Sense and Sensibility, Vol. III, Ch. xiii, page 263:
- I... am sure you will be too generous to do us any ill offices.
- 1830, Joseph Smith, Doctrine and Covenants 25:5:
- And the office of thy calling shall be for a comfort unto my servant, Joseph Smith, Jun., thy husband, in his afflictions, with consoling words, in the spirit of meekness.
- 1915, William Somerset Maugham, Of Human Bondage, Ch. lxx, page 359:
- He got her slippers and took off her boots. It delighted him to perform menial offices.
- (figuratively, slang) Inside information.
- 1803, Sporting Magazine, No. 21, page 327:
- Giving the office—is when you suffer any person, who may stand behind your chair, to look over your hand.
- 1803, Sporting Magazine, No. 21, page 327:
- A room, set of rooms, or building used for non-manual work, particularly:
- The office of the Secretary of State is cleaned when it is vacant.
- 1611, Bible (KJV), 2 Chron., 24:11:
- Now it came to passe that at what time the chest was brought vnto the kings office, by the hand of the Leuites...
- 1885, The Law Times Reports, No. 53, page 459:
- Griffith, having taken offices a few doors off, also carried on the business of a solicitor.
- 1898, Winston Churchill, The Celebrity, Ch. 2:
- We drove back to the office with some concern on my part at the prospect of so large a case.
- 1945, H.L. Mencken, The American Language, Supplement Vol. I, page 503:
- An English lawyer, whether barrister or solicitor, never has an office, but always chambers.
- 2013 August 3, "Revenge of the Nerds" in The Economist, No. 408:
- Think of banking today and the image is of grey-suited men in towering skyscrapers. Its future, however, is being shaped in converted warehouses and funky offices in San Francisco, New York, and London, where bright young things in jeans and T-shirts huddle around laptops, sipping lattes or munching on free food.
- A room, set of rooms, or building used for administration and bookkeeping.
- 1849, William Thackeray, Pendennis, Vol. I, Ch. xxxvi, page 347:
- The ‘Pall Mall Gazette’ had its offices... in Catherine Street.
- 1849, William Thackeray, Pendennis, Vol. I, Ch. xxxvi, page 347:
- A room, set of rooms, or building used for selling services or tickets to the public.
- 1819 September 22, John Keats, letter to Reynolds:
- There will be some of the family waiting for you at the coach-office.
- 1819 September 22, John Keats, letter to Reynolds:
- (chiefly US, medicine) A room, set of rooms, or building used for consultation and diagnosis, but not surgery or other major procedures.
- 1975, M. Duke, Death of Holy Murderer, Ch. viii, page 108:
- This one was made out at a private office—Office is American for Surgery.
- 1975, M. Duke, Death of Holy Murderer, Ch. viii, page 108:
- (figuratively) The staff of such places.
- The whole office was there... well, except you, of course.
- (figuratively, in large organizations) The administrative departments housed in such places, particularly:
- He's from our public relations office.
- (Britain, Australia, usually capitalized, with clarifying modifier) A ministry or other department of government.
- The secretary of state's British colleague heads the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
- (Catholicism, usually capitalized) Short for Holy Office: the court of final appeal in cases of heresy.
- 1642, J. Howell, Forraine Travell, Ch. x, page 131:
- A Biscayner is capable to be a Cavalier of any of the three habits without any scrutiny to be made of the Office, whether he be, limpio de la sangre de los Moros, that is cleare of the bloud of the Moores or no.
- 1658, Pilgrim's Book, page 3:
- They abiured their Heresy bublikly [sic] before the Commissary of the holy office.
- 1642, J. Howell, Forraine Travell, Ch. x, page 131:
- A particular place of business of a larger white-collar business.
- He worked as the receptionist at the Akron office.
- 1647, W. Bridge, Saints Hiding-place, page 17:
- But there is an Insuring-Office set up in the Gospel, as to the venture of our eternities.
- 1732, Benjamin Franklin, "Proposals & Queries to be Asked the Junto":
- Would not an Office of Insurance for Servants be of Service, and what Methods are proper for the erecting such an Office?
- 1816, Jane Austen, Emma, Vol. II, Ch. xvii, page 324:
- There are advertising offices, and... by applying to them I should have no doubt of very soon meeting with something that would do.
- 1861, Charles Dickens, Great Expectations, Vol. II, Ch. xii, page 204:
- A large Danish sun or star hanging round his neck by a blue ribbon... had given him the appearance of being insured in some extraordinary Fire Office.
- (now in the plural, dated) The parts of a house or estate devoted to manual work and storage, as the kitchen, scullery, laundry, stables, etc., particularly (euphemistic, dated) a house or estate's facilities for urination and defecation: outhouses or lavatories.
- 1720, William Willymott translating Francis Bacon as "Of Building" in Lord Bacons Essays, Vol. I, page 283:
- As for the Offices, let them stand at some Distance from the House, with some low covered Galleries, to pass from them to the Palace it self.
- 1727, "The Grand Mystery":
- ... proposals for erecting 500 Publick Offices of Ease in London and Westminster...
- 1887, Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet, Ch. iii:
- A short passage, bare planked and dusty, led to the kitchen and offices.
- 1957, Emyr Estyn Evans, Irish Folk Ways, Ch. viii, page 112:
- Only in planted areas does one find old examples of planned ‘courtyard farms’ where the house and offices enclose a square or rectangular yard.
- 1957, John Braine, Room at Top, Ch. i, page 13:
- The bathroom's to the right and the usual offices next to it.
- 1980, William Golding, Rites of Passage, Ch. i, page 6:
- Aft of the lobby... is the dining saloon for the passengers with the offices of necessity on either side of it.
- 1720, William Willymott translating Francis Bacon as "Of Building" in Lord Bacons Essays, Vol. I, page 283:
- (Britain law, historical) Clipping of inquest of office: an inquest undertaken on occasions when the Crown claimed the right of possession to land or property.
- 1768, William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England, Vol. III, page 259:
- If they find the treason or felony... of the party accused... the king is thereupon, by virtue of this office found, intitled to have his forfeitures.
- 1977, John McDonald Burke, Jowitt's Dictionary of English Law, Vol. I, page 280:
- If the Crown claimed the land of an idiot, the person had first to be found an idiot by office.
- 1768, William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England, Vol. III, page 259:
- (obsolete) A piece of land used for hunting; the area of land overseen by a gamekeeper.
- (figuratively, slang, obsolete) A hangout: a place where one is normally found.
- 1699, A New Dictionary of the Terms Ancient and Modern of the Canting Crew:
- His Office, any Man's ordinary Haunt, or Plying-place, be it Tavern, Ale-house, Gaming-house.
- 1699, A New Dictionary of the Terms Ancient and Modern of the Canting Crew:
- (Britain military slang, dated) A plane's cockpit, particularly an observer's cockpit.
- 1917, Alan Bott, An Airman's Outings, page 161:
- I withdraw into ‘the office’, otherwise the observer's cockpit.
- 1941 March 24, Life, page 85:
- In the slang of the Royal Air Force man, the cockpit of his plane is the ‘pulpit’ or ‘office’, the glass covering over it the ‘greenhouse’.
- 1966 May 13, New Statesman, page 687
- ‘Up in the office they too knew it.’ ‘The office? You mean the flight deck?’ ‘Just that. No more. No less. The office.’
- 1917, Alan Bott, An Airman's Outings, page 161:
- (computing) A collection of business software typically including a word processor and spreadsheet and slideshow programs.
Usage notes
In reference to professional services, the term office is used with somewhat greater scope in American English, which speaks of doctor's offices etc., where British English generally prefers particular words such as surgery.
Synonyms
- (religious ritual): service, divine service, religious service, liturgy
- (Catholic ritual): Divine Office, breviary, Liturgy of the Hours, liturgy of the hours, canonical hours
- (position of responsibility): See Thesaurus:office
- (doctor's office): surgery (UK)
- (major governmental division): department, ministry, bureau
- (facilities for urination and defecation): See Thesaurus:bathroom
Hyponyms
- (position of responsibility): See Thesaurus:office
- (site of non-manual work): ticket office, box office (selling tickets); post office (governmental mail services)
Derived terms
Related terms
- officer
- official
- officiate
Descendants
- ? Swahili: afisi
- ? Marshallese: w?pij
- ? Russian: ???? (ofis)
- ? Bulgarian: ???? (ofis)
Translations
Verb
office (third-person singular simple present offices, present participle officing, simple past and past participle officed)
- To provide (someone) with an office.
- Is he officed in Congressional Relations or is he officed in SCA?
- Prior to that time, Station personnel were first officed in temporary wartime barracks on the campus and then on the second floor of the Journalism Building.
- (intransitive) To have an office.
References
- Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, 7th ed. "office". G. & C. Merriam Co. (Springfield), 1967.
- The Century Dictionary. "office". The Century Co. (New York), 1911.
Anagrams
- coiffe
French
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin officium.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /?.fis/
Noun
office m (plural offices)
- charge, task, mandate
- administrative bureau, department
- religious service, notably liturgical office
- place where a household's table (food and drink)-related services are conducted, especially by domestic staff
Derived terms
- couteau d'office
- faire office de
- office des Grandes Heures
- office de tourisme
References
- Nouveau Petit Larousse illustré. Dictionnaire encyclopédique. Paris, Librairie Larousse, 1952, 146th edition
Further reading
- “office” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).
Anagrams
- coiffe, coiffé
Latin
Verb
office
- second-person singular present active imperative of offici?
Noun
office
- ablative singular of offex
Middle English
Etymology 1
From Old French office, from Latin officium, contracted form of opificium.
Alternative forms
- offiz, offis, offyce, ofys, offise, ofice, offece, offys
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /??fi?s(?)/, /??fis(?)/
Noun
office (plural offices)
- The state of being employed or having a work or job; employment:
- Ecclesiastical or religious work; a church career.
- (rare) Unskilled work; any work that is unimportant or base.
- A position of responsibility or control; a crucial occupation:
- c. 1300, St. Thomas Becket, ll. 244 ff.
- Þis holi Man was i-torned...
To a gret office of þe world.
- Þis holi Man was i-torned...
- A clerical or church post or position; an religious office.
- A governmental or administrative position or post; a political office.
- c. 1300, St. Thomas Becket, ll. 223 ff.
- He cam to court and was in guod offiz
With þe erchebischop of Kaunterburi.
- He cam to court and was in guod offiz
- c. 1300, St. Thomas Becket, ll. 223 ff.
- The situation, status, or rank one has in the wider world or within society.
- c. 1300, St. Thomas Becket, ll. 244 ff.
- A task, chore or assignment, especially one which is important or required; an obligation:
- c. 1330, Lai le Freine:
- Þe porter of þe abbay... dede his ofice in þe clos.
- The role, purpose, or intended use or utility of something (especially a bodily part).
- c. 1380, Geoffrey Chaucer translating Boethius as Boece:
- Sche say me... withouten office of tunge and al dowmb.
- c. 1390, John Gower, Confessio Amantis, Book VII, ll. 467 ff.:
- As it is in Phisique write
Of livere, of lunge, of galle, of splen,
Thei alle unto the herte ben Servantz, and ech in his office
Entendeth to don him service.
- As it is in Phisique write
- c. 1395, Geoffrey Chaucer, "The Tale of the Wyf of Bathe" in Tales of Caunterbury, ll. 127 ff.:
- Membres of generacioun... maked been for bothe;
That is to seye, for office and for ese
Of engendrure.
- Membres of generacioun... maked been for bothe;
- c. 1380, Geoffrey Chaucer translating Boethius as Boece:
- A task or function that one organ does to assist another or the body as a whole.
- 1340, Ayenbite:
- Þe mouþ heþ tuo offices, huer-of þe on belongeþ to þe zuel?...
Þe oþer zuo is in speche.
- Þe mouþ heþ tuo offices, huer-of þe on belongeþ to þe zuel?...
- 1340, Ayenbite:
- A religious ceremony or ritual; a task performed for religious reasons.
- a. 1300, Arthour & Merlin, ll. 2758 ff.:
- Þe holy bischop...
For him dede þe office;
In erþe he was sikerliche
Layd swiþe nobeliche.
- Þe holy bischop...
- a. 1300, Arthour & Merlin, ll. 2758 ff.:
- (Christianity) The beginning or the initial portion of the Eucharist.
- c. 1300, St. Thomas Becket, ll. 942 ff.:
- He song þulke masse ilome, for al-so heo bi-ginnez
Þe furste offiz is propre inov to þe stat þat he was Inne.
- He song þulke masse ilome, for al-so heo bi-ginnez
- c. 1300, St. Thomas Becket, ll. 942 ff.:
- A core human faculty (e.g. movement, talking, literacy)
- c. 1330, Lai le Freine:
- A part, faculty, or division of a larger body:
- A part of a house or estate devoted to manual work and storage.
- a. 1422, petition, P.R.O. 117, 5842:
- ... Abbeyes, Priories, hospitals, chaunteries and chappels, chaces, parkes, offices, milnes, weres...
- a. 1422, petition, P.R.O. 117, 5842:
- A part or subdivision of an estate devoted to a specified function.
- (rare) A part or subdivision of a government devoted to a specified function.
- 1435, petition, P.R.O. 130, 6460A:
- John Duc of Bedford... Admirall of England in the office of þe admiralte in the Countees of Kent, Sussex...
- 1435, petition, P.R.O. 130, 6460A:
- A part of a house or estate devoted to manual work and storage.
- An inquest undertaken to investigate the possession of land or property.
- 1432, petition, P.R.O. 26, 1259:
- Of the whiche Maner the seyd Oratrice... be an Offyce was put out.
- 1432, petition, P.R.O. 26, 1259:
- The intended or ideal working or operation of something.
- An officeholder invested with powers and authority.
- c. 1440, Stephen Scrope translating Christine de Pisan as The Epistle of Othea, page 85:
- He pleide so sweetly þat... alle þe helly offices lefte there besinesses.
- c. 1440, Stephen Scrope translating Christine de Pisan as The Epistle of Othea, page 85:
- (rare) A building or structure used for business purposes; an office.
- c. 1395, Geoffrey Chaucer, "The Freres Tale" in Tales of Caunterbury:
- ...I wol han .xij. pens, though that she be wood,
Or I wol sompne hir vn to our office...
- ...I wol han .xij. pens, though that she be wood,
- 1440, Promptorium Parvulorum, page 363:
- Offyce, or place of offyce, officina.
- c. 1395, Geoffrey Chaucer, "The Freres Tale" in Tales of Caunterbury:
- (rare) The process or undertaking of a task or assignment.
- c. 1300, The Romance of Sir Beues of Hamtoun, ll. 3555 ff.:
- While Beues was in þat office,
Þe kinges sone...
A ?ede to Beves stable.
- While Beues was in þat office,
- c. 1300, The Romance of Sir Beues of Hamtoun, ll. 3555 ff.:
- (rare) The activities typical of and concomitant to one's place in society.
- (rare) A favour; a beneficial deed or act.
Related terms
- officen
- officer
- official
Descendants
- English: office
- Scots: office, offish
References
- “off??ce, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2019-03-17.
Etymology 2
From Old French officier.
Verb
office
- Alternative form of officen
Norman
Noun
office m (plural offices)
- (Jersey) office
Old French
Noun
office m (oblique plural offices, nominative singular offices, nominative plural office)
- office (building; room)
- office (position, role, job)
- service
Descendants
- French: office
References
- office on the Anglo-Norman On-Line Hub
office From the web:
- what office character are you
- what office is terry mcauliffe running for
- what officers does the president appoint
- what office was located at the watergate complex
- what office supplies do i need
- what offices were hit at the pentagon
- what offices are up for election in 2021
- what offices are part of the federal government
post
English
Alternative forms
- poast (obsolete)
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /p??st/
- (General American) enPR: p?st, IPA(key): /po?st/
- Rhymes: -??st
Etymology 1
From Old English post (“pillar, door-post”) and Latin postis (“a post, a door-post”) through Old French.
Noun
post (plural posts)
- A long dowel or plank protruding from the ground; a fencepost; a lightpost.
- (construction) A stud; a two-by-four.
- A pole in a battery.
- (dentistry) A long, narrow piece inserted into a root canal to provide retention for a crown.
- (vocal music, chiefly a cappella) A prolonged final melody note, among moving harmony notes.
- (paper, printing) A printing paper size measuring 19.25 inches x 15.5 inches.
- (sports) A goalpost.
- A location on a basketball court near the basket.
- (obsolete) The doorpost of a victualler's shop or inn, on which were chalked the scores of customers; hence, a score; a debt.
- 1600, Samuel Rowlands, The knauve of clubs
- when God ?ends coyne,
I will di?charge your poa?t
- when God ?ends coyne,
- 1600, Samuel Rowlands, The knauve of clubs
- the vertical part of a crochet stitch
Derived terms
Translations
Verb
post (third-person singular simple present posts, present participle posting, simple past and past participle posted)
- (transitive) To hang (a notice) in a conspicuous manner for general review.
- Post no bills.
- To hold up to public blame or reproach; to advertise opprobriously; to denounce by public proclamation.
- to post someone for cowardice
- 1732, George Granville, Epilogue to the She-Gallants, line 13
- On Pain of being posted to your Sorrow / Fail not, at Four, to meet me here To-morrow.
- (accounting) To carry (an account) from the journal to the ledger.
- 1712, John Arbuthnot, The History of John Bull, Chapter X
- You have not posted your books these ten years.
- 1712, John Arbuthnot, The History of John Bull, Chapter X
- To inform; to give the news to; to make acquainted with the details of a subject; often with up.
- 1872, "Interviewing a Prince", Saturday Review, London, volume 33, number 853, March 2, page 273
- thoroughly posted up in the politics and literature of the day
- 1872, "Interviewing a Prince", Saturday Review, London, volume 33, number 853, March 2, page 273
- (transitive, poker) To pay (a blind).
- Since Jim was new to the game, he had to post $4 in order to receive a hand.
Derived terms
- poster
Descendants
- Chinese: po
Translations
Etymology 2
Borrowed from Middle French poste, from Italian posta (“stopping-place for coaches”), feminine of posto (“placed, situated”).
Noun
post (plural posts)
- (obsolete) Each of a series of men stationed at specific places along a postroad, with responsibility for relaying letters and dispatches of the monarch (and later others) along the route. [16th-17th c.]
- (dated) A station, or one of a series of stations, established for the refreshment and accommodation of travellers on some recognized route.
- a stage or railway post
- A military base; the place at which a soldier or a body of troops is stationed; also, the troops at such a station.
- (now historical) Someone who travels express along a set route carrying letters and dispatches; a courier. [from 16th c.]
- (Can we date this quote?)
- In certain places there be always fresh posts, to carry that further which is brought unto them by the other.
- c. 1591, William Shakespeare, Two Gentlemen of Verona, Act I, scene iii, line 152
- I fear my Julia would not deign my lines, / Receiving them from such a worthless post.
- 2011, Thomas Penn, Winter King: Henry VII and the Dawn of Tudor England, Penguin 2012, p. 199:
- information was filtered through the counting-houses and warehouses of Antwerp; posts galloped along the roads of the Low Countries, while dispatches streamed through Calais, and were passed off the merchant galleys arriving in London from the Flanders ports.
- (Can we date this quote?)
- (Britain, Australia, New Zealand) An organisation for delivering letters, parcels etc., or the service provided by such an organisation. [from 17th c.]
- sent via post; parcel post
- 1707, Alexander Pope, Letter VII (to Mr. Wycherly), November 11
- I take it too as an opportunity of sending you the fair copy of the poem on Dullness, which was not then finished, and which I should not care to hazard by the common post.
- (Britain, Australia, New Zealand) A single delivery of letters; the letters or deliveries that make up a single batch delivered to one person or one address. [from 17th c.]
- A message posted in an electronic or Internet forum, or on a blog, etc. [from 20th c.]
- (American football) A moderate to deep passing route in which a receiver runs 10-20 yards from the line of scrimmage straight down the field, then cuts toward the middle of the field (towards the facing goalposts) at a 45-degree angle.
- Two of the receivers ran post patterns.
- (obsolete) Haste or speed, like that of a messenger or mail carrier.
- a. 1597, William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, Act V, scene iii, line 273
- And then in post he came from Mantua.
- a. 1597, William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, Act V, scene iii, line 273
- (obsolete) One who has charge of a station, especially a postal station.
- 1858, John Gorham Palfrey, History of New England, Volume 1, chapter IV, page 136
- there he held the office of postmaster, or, as it was then called, post, for several years.
- 1858, John Gorham Palfrey, History of New England, Volume 1, chapter IV, page 136
Derived terms
Descendants
All are borrowed
Translations
Verb
post (third-person singular simple present posts, present participle posting, simple past and past participle posted)
- To travel with relays of horses; to travel by post horses, originally as a courier. [from 16th c.]
- 1818, Mary Shelley, Frankenstein:
- Beyond Cologne we descended to the plain of Holland; and we resolved to post the remainder of our way […].
- 1818, Mary Shelley, Frankenstein:
- To travel quickly; to hurry. [from 16th c.]
- c. 1606, William Shakespeare, King Lear, Act III, scene vi, line 1
- Post speedily to my lord your husband.
- c. 1652, John Milton, "On His Blindness", line 13
- thousand at his bidding speed, / And post o'er land and ocean without rest; / They also serve who only stand and wait.
- c. 1606, William Shakespeare, King Lear, Act III, scene vi, line 1
- (Britain, Australia, New Zealand) To send (an item of mail etc.) through the postal service. [from 19th c.]
- Mail items posted before 7.00pm within the Central Business District and before 5.00pm outside the Central Business District will be delivered the next working day.
- (horse-riding) To rise and sink in the saddle, in accordance with the motion of the horse, especially in trotting. [from 19th c.]
- (Internet) To publish (a message) to a newsgroup, forum, blog, etc. [from 20th c.]
- I couldn't figure it out, so I posted a question on the mailing list.
Derived terms
- poster
Translations
Adverb
post (not comparable)
- With the post, on post-horses; by a relay of horses (changing at every staging-post); hence, express, with speed, quickly.
- c. 1602, William Shakespeare, All’s Well That Ends Well, Act IV, Scene 5,[2]
- His highness comes post from Marseilles,
- 1749, Henry Fielding, Tom Jones, Folio Society 1973, p. 353:
- In this posture were affairs at the inn when a gentleman arrived there post.
- 1888, Rudyard Kipling, ‘The Arrest of Lieutenant Golightly’, Plain Tales from the Hills, Folio 2005, p. 93:
- He prided himself on looking neat even when he was riding post.
- c. 1602, William Shakespeare, All’s Well That Ends Well, Act IV, Scene 5,[2]
- Sent via the postal service.
Descendants
- German: posten
Translations
Etymology 3
Probably from French poste.
Noun
post (plural posts)
- An assigned station; a guard post.
- An appointed position in an organization, job.
Translations
Verb
post (third-person singular simple present posts, present participle posting, simple past and past participle posted)
- To enter (a name) on a list, as for service, promotion, etc.
- To assign to a station; to set; to place.
- Post a sentinel in front of the door.
- 1839, Thomas De Quincey, Recollections of Grasmere (published in Tait's Edinburgh Magazine)
- It might be to obtain a ship for a lieutenant, […] or to get him posted.
Translations
Etymology 4
Borrowed from Latin post.
Preposition
post
- After; especially after a significant event that has long-term ramifications.
- 2008, Michael Tomasky, "Obama cannot let the right cast him in that 60s show", The Guardian, online,
- One of the most appealing things for me about Barack Obama has always been that he comes post the post-60s generation.
- 2008, Matthew Stevens, "Lew pressured to reveal what he knows", The Australian, online,
- Lew reckons he had three options for the cash-cow which was Premier post the Coles sale.
- 2008, Michael Tomasky, "Obama cannot let the right cast him in that 60s show", The Guardian, online,
Etymology 5
Clipping of post-production.
Noun
post (uncountable)
- (film, informal) Post-production.
See also
- post-
Etymology 6
Clipping of post mortem
Noun
post (plural posts)
- (medicine, informal) A post mortem (investigation of body's cause of death).
- 2010, Sandra Glahn, Informed Consent (page 306)
- I gotta run. Yes, send the kid to the morgue. We'll do a post on Monday.
- 2010, Sandra Glahn, Informed Consent (page 306)
Anagrams
- OTPs, POTS, PTOs, Spot, TPOs, opts, pots, spot, stop, tops
Catalan
Etymology
From Old Occitan, from Latin postus, from positus.
Verb
post
- past participle of pondre
Cimbrian
Etymology
Borrowed from Italian posta.
Noun
post f (Luserna)
- post (method of delivering mail)
- post office
Derived terms
- postkart
References
- “post” in Patuzzi, Umberto, ed., (2013) Ünsarne Börtar [Our Words], Luserna, Italy: Comitato unitario delle isole linguistiche storiche germaniche in Italia / Einheitskomitee der historischen deutschen Sprachinseln in Italien
Cornish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [po?st]
Noun
post m (plural postow)
- post (method of sending mail)
Related terms
- lytherva
- postya
- sodhva an post
Danish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /?p?st/, [?p??sd?]
Etymology 1
Via French poste m from Italian posto (“post, location”), from Latin positus (“position”), from the verb p?n? (“to place”).
Noun
post c (singular definite posten, plural indefinite poster)
- post (position, job)
Inflection
Derived terms
- postere
- vagtpost
Etymology 2
Via French poste f from Italian posta (“stopping-place, post office”), from Latin posita, the past participle of p?n? (“to place”).
Noun
post c (singular definite posten, not used in plural form)
- post, mail (letters or packages)
- post, mail (a public institution distributing letters or packages)
- postman (a person carrying letters or packages)
Inflection
Derived terms
- postbud
- postkontor
Etymology 3
Via French poste f from Italian posta (“stopping-place, post office”), from Latin posita, the past participle of p?n? (“to place”).
Noun
post c (singular definite posten, plural indefinite poster)
- entry (in a budget)
Inflection
Derived terms
- postere
Etymology 4
Via Middle Low German post from Latin postis (“post, door-post”).
Noun
post c (singular definite posten, plural indefinite poster)
- pump, tap, faucet (an outdoor water pump)
- (rare, in compounds) post (supporting a door or a window)
Inflection
Derived terms
- dørpost
- vandpost
- vinduespost
Dutch
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /p?st/
- Hyphenation: post
- Rhymes: -?st
Etymology 1
Borrowed from Middle French poste, from Italian posta.
Noun
post f or m (plural posten, diminutive postje n)
- Mail.
- A mail office, a post office.
Derived terms
Descendants
- Afrikaans: pos
- ? Indonesian: pos
Etymology 2
Borrowed from French poste, from Italian posto.
Noun
post f or m (plural posten, diminutive postje n)
- A location or station, where a soldier is supposed to be; position.
- A post, a position, an office.
- Toekomstig Amerikaans president Barack Obama maakt zijn keuzes bekend voor de posten binnen zijn kabinet op het gebied van veiligheid en buitenlands beleid. — President elect Barack Obama makes his choices known for the posts within his cabinet in the area of security and exterior policy. (nl.wikipedia, 12/3/2008)
Derived terms
- grenspost
- handelspost
- legerpost
Descendants
- Afrikaans: pos
- ? Indonesian: pos
Etymology 3
See the etymology of the main entry.
Verb
post
- first-, second- and third-person singular present indicative of posten
- imperative of posten
Anagrams
- spot, stop
Esperanto
Etymology
Latin post
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /post/
- Hyphenation: post
Preposition
post
- after
- behind
French
Etymology
From English post.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /p?st/
Noun
post m (plural posts)
- (Internet) post (message on a blog, etc.)
Irish
Alternative forms
- posta (Cois Fharraige)
Etymology
Borrowed from English post.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [p??s?t??]
Noun
post m (genitive singular poist, nominative plural poist)
- timber post, stake
- (historical) post, letter carrier; (letter) post; postman
- (military) post
- (of employment) post, job
Declension
Derived terms
Mutation
Further reading
- "post" in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, An Gúm, 1977, by Niall Ó Dónaill.
- Entries containing “post” in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm, 1959, by Tomás de Bhaldraithe.
- Entries containing “post” in New English-Irish Dictionary by Foras na Gaeilge.
Italian
Etymology
Borrowed from English post.
Noun
post m (invariable)
- (Internet) post (message in a forum)
Anagrams
- spot, stop
Latin
Etymology
From earlier poste, from Proto-Italic *posti, from Proto-Indo-European *pósti, from *pós. Related to p?ne.
Pronunciation
- (Classical) IPA(key): /post/, [p?s?t?]
- (Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /post/, [p?st?]
Preposition
post (+ accusative)
- (of space) behind
- (of time) after, since, (transf.) besides, except
Adverb
post (not comparable)
- (of space) behind, back, backwards
- (of time) afterwards, after
Antonyms
- (before): ante
Derived terms
- post-
- poster/ posterus
- post?cus
Descendants
References
- post in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- post in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- post in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition, 1883–1887)
- post in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré Latin-Français, Hachette
- Carl Meissner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book?[3], London: Macmillan and Co.
- Pokorny, Julius (1959) Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume III, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 841
Latvian
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [puôst]
Verb
post (tr., 1st conj., pres. pošu, pos, poš, past posu)
- tidy, clean, adorn
- dress up, smarten
Conjugation
Mòcheno
Etymology
Borrowed from Italian posta.
Noun
post f
- post (method of delivering mail)
- post office
Derived terms
- postkòrt
References
- “post” in Cimbrian, Ladin, Mòcheno: Getting to know 3 peoples. 2015. Servizio minoranze linguistiche locali della Provincia autonoma di Trento, Trento, Italy.
Northern Kurdish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /po?st/
Noun
post m
- skin
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology
From Italian posta (in the given sense)
Noun
post m (definite singular posten, indefinite plural poster, definite plural postene)
- post or mail (letters etc. sent via the postal service)
Derived terms
References
- “post” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology
From Italian posta (in this sense)
Noun
post m (definite singular posten, indefinite plural postar, definite plural postane)
- post or mail (letters etc. sent via the postal service)
Derived terms
References
- “post” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Old English
Etymology
From Latin postis (“post, pedestal”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /post/
Noun
post m
- post
- pedestal
Declension
Descendants
- Middle English: post, poste
- English: post
- ? German: Post
- Scots: post, poist
- English: post
Polish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /p?st/
Etymology 1
From Proto-Slavic *post?.
Noun
post m inan
- fast
Declension
Derived terms
- (verb) po?ci? impf
- (adjective) postny
Etymology 2
Borrowed from English post.
Noun
post m anim
- post (message)
Declension
Further reading
- post in Wielki s?ownik j?zyka polskiego, Instytut J?zyka Polskiego PAN
- post in Polish dictionaries at PWN
Portuguese
Etymology
Borrowed from English post.
Pronunciation
- (Brazil) IPA(key): /?powst??/, /?post??/
Noun
post m (plural posts)
- (Internet) post (individual message in an on-line discussion)
Romanian
Etymology 1
From Proto-Slavic *post?.
Noun
post n (plural posturi)
- fast (period of abstaining from or eating very little food), fasting
Related terms
- posti
See also
- p?resimi
- Postul Mare
Etymology 2
Borrowed from French poste.
Noun
post n (plural posturi)
- post, position, job, place, appointment, station
Scottish Gaelic
Etymology
Borrowed from English post.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /p??s?t?/
Noun
post m (genitive singular puist, plural puist)
- post, mail
- Alternative form of posta
- post, stake
Derived terms
- cairt-phuist
- post-bàire
- post-dealain
Verb
post (past phost, future postaidh, verbal noun postadh, past participle poste)
- post, mail
Mutation
Serbo-Croatian
Etymology
From Proto-Slavic *post?.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /pô?st/
Noun
p?st m (Cyrillic spelling ?????)
- fast, fasting
Declension
Slovene
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /p??st/
Noun
p?st m inan
- fast (act or practice of abstaining from or eating very little food)
Inflection
This noun needs an inflection-table template.
Spanish
Etymology
Borrowed from English post. Doublet of puesto.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /?post/, [?post?]
Noun
post m (plural posts)
- (computing) post
Swedish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /p?st/
- Rhymes: -?st
Noun
post c
- postal office; an organization delivering mail and parcels
- (uncountable) mail; collectively for things sent through a post office
- item of a list or on an agenda
- post; an assigned station
- position to which someone may be assigned or elected
- Posten som ordförande i idrottsföreningen är vakant.
- The position as chairman in the sports association is free.
- Posten som ordförande i idrottsföreningen är vakant.
Declension
Related terms
- posta
- postkontor
- postlåda
- Posten
Anagrams
- stop
Tagalog
Etymology
Borrowed English post.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /poust/, [po?st]
Noun
post
- (computing, Internet) post
Derived terms
Turkish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [post]
Noun
post (definite accusative postu, plural postlar)
- fur, hide, pelt
- Synonym: kürk
Welsh
Pronunciation
- (North Wales) IPA(key): /po?sd/, [p?o?st]
- (South Wales) IPA(key): /p?sd/, [p??st]
Etymology 1
Borrowed from English post.
Noun
post m (uncountable)
- post, mail
Derived terms
Etymology 2
From Latin postis.
Noun
post m (plural pyst)
- post, pillar
Derived terms
- mynegbost (“signpost”)
Alternative forms
- postyn
Mutation
post From the web:
- what post office delivers my mail
- what postal code
- what postal code am i in
- what post office is open today
- what post office delivers to my address
- what post office can i get a passport
- what postpartum depression
- what postpones elizabeth's execution
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