staff
[noun]
Synonyms:
- workers, employees, personnel, team, workforce
- stick, cane, crook, pole, rod, sceptre, stave, wand

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English Thesaurus: colleague, workmate, coworker, associate, staff, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. staff¹ S2 W2 /stɑːf $ stæf/ noun
[Language: Old English; Origin: stæf 'stick']

1. WORKERS [C, also plural British English] the people who work for an organization
staff of 10/50 etc
Our department has a staff of seven.
The entire staff has done an outstanding job this year.
They employ a total of 150 staff.
The staff were very helpful.
medical/academic/library etc staff
a strike by ambulance staff
one of our longest-serving staff members
member of staff British English:
I’d like to welcome a new member of staff.
on the staff (of something)
We were both on the staff of the British Film Institute at the time.
on staff American English:
Joan is the only lawyer we have on staff.
a staff meeting
staff room British English (=a room for teachers in a school)
GRAMMAR
In British English, staff is often used as a plural noun and followed by a plural verb:
We need to recruit more staff.
All the teaching staff were women.
In American English, staff is not often used in this way, and is never followed by a plural verb.
► You never refer to a person as 'a staff'. Say a staff member, a member of staff (BrE), or an employee.

2. STICK [countable] (plural staves /steɪvz/)
a) old use a long thick stick to help you walk
b) a long thick stick that an official holds in some ceremonies

3. MUSIC [countable] especially American English the set of five lines that music is written on Synonym : stave

4. the staff of life literary bread
⇒ general staff, ground staff

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. staff² verb [transitive usually passive]
to be or provide the workers for an organization ⇒ overstaffed, understaffed:
The centre is staffed mainly by volunteers.
—staffing noun [uncountable]:
staffing levels

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

staff
noun
ADJ. full-time, part-time | permanent, temporary | skeleton We'll be down to a skeleton staff over Christmas.
experienced, professional, qualified, skilled, trained | unskilled | junior, senior | ancillary, support | general (= officers assisting a military leader in administration and planning) | academic, administrative, editorial, etc. | nursing, teaching, etc. | hospital, hotel, etc. | bar, kitchen, etc.
QUANT. member There are only four full-time members of staff in the company.
VERB + STAFF employ, have The company has a staff of fifty.
appoint, engage, hire, recruit, take on staff appointed to the project I've heard they're recruiting staff at the moment.
dismiss, fire, lay off, make redundant, sack A spokesperson said that the bank expects to make 15,000 staff redundant over the next three years.
train | pay They pay their staff by cheque.
join He joined the editorial staff in 1999.
leave
STAFF + NOUN member | levels, numbers, resources | shortage | turnover | cut | appointment The hospital is freezing staff appointments as part of its cutbacks.
development, training | morale | meeting | canteen, dining room, restaurant, room
PREP. on the ~ (of) She has been on the staff of the hospital for most of her working life.
PHRASES chief of staff (= the most senior officer serving under and advising the person who commands each of the armed forces)

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

staff
verb be staffed
ADV. well | fully, properly The ward is now fully staffed.
adequately | inadequately, short I'm afraid we're desperately short staffed at the moment.
PHRASES be staffed (entirely/largely/mainly) by/with sb The office will be staffed entirely with volunteers.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

staff

full-time/part-time staff
The school has over 100 full-time staff.
permanent/temporary staff
Much of the work is done by temporary staff.
senior/junior staff
I have taken on board the comments of my senior staff.
medical/academic/technical etc staff
We would like to thank all the medical staff at Broadgreen Hospital.
hospital/library/office etc staff
He had responsibility for training library staff.
support staff (=office staff, technical staff etc)
A school needs good support staff.
trained/qualified staff
Recruitment of trained staff was a continuing problem.
a staff member (also a member of staff British English)
At least one staff member should always be present.
a staff meeting
On Wednesdays there’s our weekly staff meeting.
staff training
The company has made a massive investment in staff training.
the staff room British English (=a room for teachers in a school)
I usually have a coffee in the staff room before school starts.
staff morale (=how happy and confident the staff somewhere feel)
Staff morale has been badly affected by the reorganisation.
have staff (also employ staff formal)
The hotel has 145 staff.
join the staff
Kelly Jones has joined the staff as a medical secretary.
be on the staff British English, be on staff AmE:
He is no longer on the staff.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

staff
noun
BAD: The assembly and packing department has 50 staffs.
GOOD: The assembly and packing department has 50 staff.
GOOD: The assembly and packing department has a staff of 50.

Usage Note:
The noun staff refers to a whole group of people, (NOT a single person): '(The) staff at the Central Hospital have rejected the new pay offer.' 'Several senior members of staff have opted for early retirement.'

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Common Errors ▲

colleague someone who you work with in a company or organization, for example someone working in the same office, or someone teaching in the same school:
Friends and former colleagues described him as a kind and caring man.
She discovered that her male colleagues were earning more than she was.
workmate British English someone who you work with. Workmate is more informal than colleague:
He went out for a drink with his workmates.
coworker American English someone who you work with:
I was sad to say goodbye to all of my coworkers.
associate someone who you work with, especially another businessman or businesswoman:
They are close friends and business associates.
staff all the people who work for an organization:
The company employs a total of 520 staff.
a staff meeting

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

worker someone who does a particular type of job, or someone who works for an organization but is not a manager:
a post-office worker
The workers are threatening to go on strike.
The report shows that male manual workers earn twice as much as female workers.
employee someone who has a job, especially a permanent job, with a particular company or organization:
Employees of the airline get generous reductions on the cost of flights.
member of staff/staff member one of the people who work for a company, organization, school etc - used especially in official contexts:
Training opportunities are available to all members of staff.
Several staff members complained about his increasing strange behaviour.
colleague (also coworker especially American English) someone you work with – use this especially about people who do professional jobs in offices, schools etc:
I’d like you to meet a colleague of mine, Jean-Michel Blanc.
What should you do if a co-worker is injured?
workforce all the people that work in a country, industry, or large organization:
Women make up 41% of the workforce.
staff all the people who work in a company, organization, school etc:
The staff were clearly worried about rumours of job losses.
sales staff

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲