staff
Staff means everyone who works at a particular place. You might suspect that the town library’s not a very fun place to work if its staff is always incredibly cranky every time you visit.
Staff refers to all of the employees at a business, or especially a school, where the teachers as a group are called “the staff.” A completely different meaning of staff is a long wooden stick or rod, particularly one that has a specific purpose — like a walking stick or a weapon. This is the original meaning of staff, from the Old English stæf. It wasn’t until the nineteenth century that the word staff was used to mean “group of employees.”
a strong rod or stick with a specialized utilitarian purpose
“he walked with the help of a wooden
staff”-
types:
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alpenstocka stout staff with a metal point; used by mountain climbers
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batona short staff carried by some officials to symbolize an office or an authority
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crook, shepherd’s crooka long staff with one end being hook shaped
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crutcha wooden or metal staff that fits under the armpit and reaches to the ground; used by disabled person while walking
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distaffthe staff on which wool or flax is wound before spinning
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flagpole, flagstaffa tall staff or pole on which a flag is raised
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pikestaffthe staff of a pike
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quarterstaffa long stout staff used as a weapon
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type of:
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stickan implement consisting of a length of wood
a rod carried as a symbol
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crosier, croziera staff surmounted by a crook or cross carried by bishops as a symbol of pastoral office
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macea ceremonial staff carried as a symbol of office or authority
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scepter, sceptre, verge, wanda ceremonial or emblematic staff
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tipstaffstaff with a metal tip carried as a sign of office by e.g. a bailiff or constable
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baublea mock scepter carried by a court jester
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type of:
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symbolan arbitrary sign (written or printed) that has acquired a conventional significance
(music) the system of five horizontal lines on which the musical notes are written
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synonyms:
stave-
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musical notation(music) notation used by musicians
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musical notation
personnel who assist their superior in carrying out an assigned task
“the hospital has an excellent nursing
staff”“the general relied on his
staff to make routine decisions”-
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newsroomthe staff of a newspaper or the news department of a periodical
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office, office staffprofessional or clerical workers in an office
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research staffa group of associated research workers in a university or library or laboratory
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sales staffthose in a business who are responsible for sales
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security staffthose in an organization responsible for preventing spying or theft
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maintenance staff, service staffthose in a business responsible for maintaining the physical plant
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general staffmilitary officers assigned to assist a senior officer in planning military policy
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headquarters staffmilitary staff stationed at headquarters
the body of teachers and administrators at a school
serve on the staff of
“The two men
staff the reception desk”-
type of:
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servedo duty or hold offices; serve in a specific function
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serve
provide with staff
building material consisting of plaster and hair; used to cover external surfaces of temporary structure (as at an exposition) or for decoration
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type of:
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building materialmaterial used for constructing buildings
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building material