employ

employverb

American /ɪm.ˈplɔɪ/ British /ɪm.ˈplɔɪ/ The stress is on the second part: im-PLOY.

third-person singular employs past tense employed past participle employed present participle employing

very commondefining vocabulary

give workpay someone to work for you
transitive [T] verb + object [V + obj] verb + object + as + noun or adjective [V + obj + as] verb + object + to-infinitive [V + obj + to-inf]
- The factory employs about two hundred people. V + obj
- She is employed as a nurse at the local hospital. V + obj + as (passive)
- They employed a builder to fix the roof. V + obj + to-inf
- How many people does your company employ? V + obj
Collocations
verb + noun employ staff, employ workers, employ people
adverb + verb be fully employed, be directly employed
phrase be employed by a company, be employed as a teacher, be employed full-time
Synonyms hire
Antonyms fire; dismiss
useuse a method, skill, or tool for a particular purpose
transitive [T] verb + object [V + obj] verb + object + to-infinitive [V + obj + to-inf] formal
- Writers often employ humor to make a serious point. V + obj + to-inf
- The company employs the latest technology. V + obj
- Police employed a new method to trace the stolen car. V + obj + to-inf
Collocations
verb + noun employ a method, employ a technique, employ a strategy
Synonyms use

Word family

employee
employer
employment
unemployed

Choosing between employ · hire

Employ usually describes a lasting situation: the company employs fifty people. Hire describes the moment of giving someone a job, and is the more common everyday word in American English: we hired two new people last week. Hire is also used for paying someone to do one short job: hire a lawyer.

Common mistakes

She employed at a big company. She is employed at a big company.
The worker is the object of employ, so the worker is employed; or simply say she works at a big company.

For translators

Grammar trap The worker is the object of employ: the company employs the worker, and the worker is employed. Do not make the worker the subject of active employ.