1
a
: a long stick carried in the hand for support in walking
b
: a supporting rod: such as
(1)
archaic
: shaft sense 1a(1)
(2)
: a crosspiece in a ladder or chair : rung
(3)
(4)
: a pivoted arbor
2
a
: crosier
b
: a rod carried as a symbol of office or authority
3
: the horizontal lines with their spaces on which music is written
called also stave
4
: any of various graduated sticks or rules used for measuring : rod
5
plural staffs
a
: the officers chiefly responsible for the internal operations of an institution or business
b
: a group of officers appointed to assist a civil executive or commanding officer
c
: military or naval officers not eligible for operational command
d
: the personnel who assist a director in carrying out an assigned task
e
plural staff
: a member of a staff
employs three full-time staff
staff
adjective
staffed; staffing; staffs
1
: to supply with a staff or with workers
2
: to serve as a staff member of
an organization staffed by volunteers
Synonyms
Examples of staff in a Sentence
Noun
The entire staff has done a great job this year.
The staff is at a meeting.
She's a new member of the staff.
The general's staff is planning the army's next move.
Verb
We'll need 300 workers to properly staff the hotel.
the 300 workers who staff the hotel
Recent Examples on the Web
Peter Green, Quartz, 10 Nov. 2024
Dayton Avenue was still closed for a block a couple of days after the election and the security staff on duty had yet to pack up and fold their klieg lights and break down their Checkpoint Charlie huts and move all the vehicles.
—Joe Soucheray, Twin Cities, 9 Nov. 2024
Todd Spitzer, Orange County Register, 11 Nov. 2024
The most effective way to request a curbside ballot is to bring someone along to the polling location who can go inside the building, or flag down a fellow voter who could relay the request to staff inside.
—Dan Horn, The Enquirer, 6 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for staff 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Noun
Sunday Reads was brought to you by Peter S. Green and the staff of Quartz.
—Peter Green, Quartz, 10 Nov. 2024
Dayton Avenue was still closed for a block a couple of days after the election and the security staff on duty had yet to pack up and fold their klieg lights and break down their Checkpoint Charlie huts and move all the vehicles.
—Joe Soucheray, Twin Cities, 9 Nov. 2024
Verb
Voters rejected Gascon’s anti-public safety mandates to not file enhancements, including gun enhancements, forbidding his prosecutors to staff parole hearings or to seek the death penalty, and putting the rights of criminals over the rights of victims.
—Todd Spitzer, Orange County Register, 11 Nov. 2024
The most effective way to request a curbside ballot is to bring someone along to the polling location who can go inside the building, or flag down a fellow voter who could relay the request to staff inside.
—Dan Horn, The Enquirer, 6 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for staff
Dictionary Entries Near staff
Cite this Entry
“Staff.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/staff. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
staff
1 of 2 noun1
a
: a pole, stick, rod, or bar used as a support or as a sign of authority
a flag hanging limp on its staff
b
: the long handle of a weapon (as a lance or pike)
2
: something that is a source of strength
bread is the staff of life
3
: the five horizontal lines and the spaces between them on which music is written
4
plural staffs
a
: a group of persons serving as assistants to or employees under a chief
a hospital staff
b
: military officers who assist a commanding officer in planning and management but who do not take part in actual combat
staff
adjective
staff
2 of 2 verb
: to supply with a staff or with workers
Medical Definition
staff
noun
: the doctors and surgeons regularly attached to a hospital and helping to determine its policies and guide its activities
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