office

Definitions

office comes from Latin officium = opus ('work') + facere ('do') = 'the doing of work, a duty.' Originally it meant a duty or service one performs; then it shifted to the position that carries that duty ('hold office'), and finally to the room where the work gets done. All three senses trace back to 'work being done.'

Why It Means This

Office shows how a word can travel from an abstract duty to a concrete place. Latin officium ('a service, a duty,' from 'doing work') first named the obligation itself — which is why we still 'take office' and speak of someone's 'good offices' (helpful acts). Only later did it come to mean the physical room where official work happens. The duty came first; the room came second.

Common Collocations

• 1.head office总部；总公司
• 2.post office邮局
• 3.box office票房
• 4.in office在职；执政
• 5.take office就职

Example Sentences

• 1.

  She left the office late after finishing the report.

• 2.

  He held the office of mayor for eight years.

• 3.

  Please drop the form off at the front office.