offices

noun

(religion) A ceremonial duty or service, particularly:

(Christianity) The authorized form of ceremonial worship of a church.

(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.

(Protestantism) Various prayers used with modification as a morning or evening service.

(Christianity) Last rites.

A position of responsibility.

Official position, particularly high employment within government; tenure in such a position.

(now usually in plural) A service, a kindness.

(figuratively, slang) Inside information.

A room, set of rooms, or building used for non-manual work, particularly:

A room, set of rooms, or building used for administration and bookkeeping.

A room, set of rooms, or building used for selling services or tickets to the public.

(chiefly US, medicine) A room, set of rooms, or building used for consultation and diagnosis, but not surgery or other major procedures.

(figuratively) The staff of such places.

(figuratively, in large organizations) The administrative departments housed in such places, particularly:

(UK, Australia, usually capitalized, with clarifying modifier) A ministry or other department of government.

A particular place of business of a larger white-collar business.

(computing) A collection of business software typically including a word processor and spreadsheet and slideshow programs.

A duty, particularly owing to one's position or station; a charge, trust, or role; (obsolete, rare) moral duty.

(Catholicism, usually capitalized) Short for Holy Office: the court of final appeal in cases of heresy. [The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.]

(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.

(UK military slang, dated) A plane's cockpit, particularly an observer's cockpit.

(Christianity, obsolete) Mass, (particularly) the introit sung at its beginning.

(archaic) Function: anything typically done by or expected of something.

(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.

(obsolete) An official or group of officials; (figuratively) a personification of officeholders.

(obsolete) A bodily function, (particularly) urination and defecation; an act of urination or defecation.

(obsolete) The performance of a duty; an instance of performing a duty.

(UK law, historical) Clipping of inquest of office: [(UK, law, historical) An inquest undertaken on occasions when the Crown claimed the right of possession to land or property.]

verb

To provide (someone) with an office.

(intransitive) To have an office.

Roots

faciofic- · Latin · make, do

Synonyms & related words for offices

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Words related to offices

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Where does offices come from?

The word offices breaks down into one root of Latin origin: the root fic-, from Latin facio (“make, do”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.