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employ
(redirected from employing)

    0.03 sec.
em·ploy  (m-ploi)
tr.v. em·ployed, em·ploy·ing, em·ploys
1.
a. To engage the services of; put to work: agreed to employ the job applicant.
b. To provide with gainful work: factories that employ thousands.
2. To put to use or service. See Synonyms at use.
3. To devote (time, for example) to an activity or purpose: employed several months in learning Swahili.
n.
1. The state of being employed: in the employ of the city.
2. Archaic Occupation.

[Middle English emploien, from Old French emploier, from Latin implicre, to involve : in-, in; see en-1 + plicre, to fold; see plek- in Indo-European roots.]

em·ploya·bili·ty n.
em·ploya·ble adj.
em·ployer n.

employ
Verb
1. to hire (someone) to do work in return for money
2. to keep busy or occupy: she was busily employed cutting the grass
3. to use as a means: you can employ various methods to cut your heating bills
Noun
in the employ of doing regular paid work for: he is in the employ of The Sunday Times [Old French emploier]
employable adj
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.employemploy - the state of being employed or having a job; "they are looking for employment"; "he was in the employ of the city"
state - the way something is with respect to its main attributes; "the current state of knowledge"; "his state of health"; "in a weak financial state"
Verb1.employemploy - put into service; make work or employ for a particular purpose or for its inherent or natural purpose; "use your head!"; "we only use Spanish at home"; "I can't use this tool"; "Apply a magnetic field here"; "This thinking was applied to many projects"; "How do you utilize this tool?"; "I apply this rule to get good results"; "use the plastic bags to store the food"; "He doesn't know how to use a computer"
dedicate, devote, commit, consecrate, give - give entirely to a specific person, activity, or cause; "She committed herself to the work of God"; "give one's talents to a good cause"; "consecrate your life to the church"
play - employ in a game or in a specific position; "They played him on first base"
play - use or move; "I had to play my queen"
pull out all the stops - use all resources available; "The organizers pulled out all the stops for the centennial meeting"
put, assign - attribute or give; "She put too much emphasis on her the last statement"; "He put all his efforts into this job"; "The teacher put an interesting twist to the interpretation of the story"
ply - use diligently; "ply your wits!"
address - address or apply oneself to something, direct one's efforts towards something, such as a question
waste - use inefficiently or inappropriately; "waste heat"; "waste a joke on an unappreciative audience"
misapply, misuse - apply to a wrong thing or person; apply badly or incorrectly; "The words are misapplied in this context"; "You are misapplying the name of this religious group"
avail - use to one's advantage; "He availed himself of the available resources"
overuse, overdrive - make use of too often or too extensively
cannibalise, cannibalize - use parts of something to repair something else
reprocess, reuse, recycle - use again after processing; "We must recycle the cardboard boxes"
exploit, work - use or manipulate to one's advantage; "He exploit the new taxation system"; "She knows how to work the system"; "he works his parents for sympathy"
exploit, tap - draw from; make good use of; "we must exploit the resources we are given wisely"
strain, extend - use to the utmost; exert vigorously or to full capacity; "He really extended himself when he climbed Kilimanjaro"; "Don't strain your mind too much"
exercise, exert - put to use; "exert one's power or influence"
enjoy - have benefit from; "enjoy privileges"
take - travel or go by means of a certain kind of transportation, or a certain route; "He takes the bus to work"; "She takes Route 1 to Newark"
share - use jointly or in common
put to work, work - cause to work; "he is working his servants hard"
implement - apply in a manner consistent with its purpose or design; "implement a procedure"
practice, use, apply - avail oneself to; "apply a principle"; "practice a religion"; "use care when going down the stairs"; "use your common sense"; "practice non-violent resistance"
resort, recur, fall back - have recourse to; "The government resorted to rationing meat"
2.employ - engage or hire for work; "They hired two new secretaries in the department"; "How many people has she employed?"
featherbed - hire more workers than are necessary
fill - appoint someone to (a position or a job)
engage - ask to represent; of legal counsel; "I'm retaining a lawyer"
ship - hire for work on a ship
sign on, sign up, contract, sign - engage by written agreement; "They signed two new pitchers for the next season"
rat - employ scabs or strike breakers in
farm out, subcontract, job - arranged for contracted work to be done by others

employ
verb 1. hire, commission, appoint, take on, retain, engage, recruit, sign up, enlist, enrol, have on the payroll
verb 2. use, apply, exercise, exert, make use of, utilize, ply, bring to bear, put to use, bring into play, avail yourself of
verb 3. spend, fill, occupy, involve, engage, take up, make use of, use up
Translations
Spanish employ [ɪmˈplɔɪ] vt (= give job to) → emplear (= make use of) [+ thing, method] → emplear, usar;
he's employed in a bank → está empleado en un banco

French employ [ɪmˈplɔɪ] vtemployer;
he's employed in a bank → il est employé de banque, il travaille dans une banque

German employ [ɪmˈplɔɪ] vtbeschäftigen;
(tool, weapon) → verwenden;
he's employed in a bank → er ist bei einer Bank angestellt

Italian employ [ɪmˈplɔɪ] vt (= make use of) [+ thing, method, person] → impiegare, servirsi di (= give job to); dare lavoro a, impiegare;
he's employed in a bank → lavora in banca

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