Definition of "office" in 英语

noun

1. (religion) A ceremonial duty or service, particularly:

2. A position of responsibility.

   • When the office of Secretary of State is vacant, its duties fall upon an official within the department.
   • Do not conflate the officeholder with the office; the distinction sometimes matters.
   • 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."

3. 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.

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

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

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

   • The secretary prevailed at the negotiations through the good offices of the Freedonian ambassador.
   • ...which we have hitherto forborne to graunt... for the evell offices whiche her other Secretary did there.

7. (figuratively, slang) Inside information.

8. 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.

9. (figuratively) The staff of such places.

   • The whole office was there... well, except you, of course.

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

    • He's from our public relations office.

11. (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.

    • 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.

12. (UK law, historical) Clipping of inquest of office:

13. (obsolete) A piece of land used for hunting; the area of land overseen by a gamekeeper.

14. (figuratively, slang, obsolete) A hangout: a place where one is normally found.

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

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