Employee Definition, Examples & Usage

Meaning 1：paid worker (employee)

employee 🔊

/ɪmˈplɔɪiː/

A person who works for another person or a company and gets paid for it.

Diverse employees collaborating in modern office meeting

paid worker 🔊

➕

/peɪd ˈwɜːrkər/

A person hired by an employer to perform work in exchange for wages or salary, typically under a formal agreement.

📁 Category：Social Roles 🔖 Level：Beginner

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Old French 'emploie' (to employ) + '-ee' (one who is), meaning 'a person who is employed'.

💡 Mnemonic

Think 'employ' + 'ee' = a person who receives the action of being employed. The '-ee' suffix signals the recipient.

📖 Example

The new employee was given a warm welcome on her first day at the tech company. 🔊 On her first day at the technology firm, the newly hired worker received a friendly greeting.

🔗 Collocations

full-time employee – An employee who works a standard number of hours per week, usually 35-40, and receives benefits.

employee benefits – Non-wage compensation provided to employees, such as health insurance, paid time off, and retirement plans.

former employee – A person who used to work for an organization but has since left, either voluntarily or involuntarily.

🔄 Synonyms

worker (n.) – A person who does a specific job or task, often used broadly for any employed individual.

staff member (n.) – A person who is part of the group of employees in an organization or business.

laborer (n.) – A person who performs physical work, especially in industries like construction, manufacturing, or agriculture.

🚫 Antonyms

employer (n.) – A person or organization that hires and pays workers for their labor.

🌱 Derivatives

employ (v.) – To hire someone for a job or to make use of something.

employer (n.) – A person or entity that employs one or more people.

employment (n.) – The state of being employed, or the work in which one is engaged.

📖 Cultural Story

The word 'employee' gained prominence during the 19th-century Industrial Revolution, shifting from 'servant' to describe a contracted worker in formal employment.