officiate

verb

of·​fi·​ci·​ate ə-ˈfi-shē-ˌāt 

officiated; officiating

intransitive verb

1

: to perform a ceremony, function, or duty

officiate at a wedding

2

: to act in an official capacity : act as an official (as at a sports contest)

transitive verb

1

: to carry out (an official duty or function)

2

: to serve as a leader or celebrant of (a ceremony)

3

: to administer the rules of (a game or sport) especially as a referee or umpire

officiation

ə-ˌfi-shē-ˈā-shən 

noun

Examples of officiate in a Sentence

The bishop officiated the memorial Mass.

Two referees officiated the hockey game.

Recent Examples on the Web

One officiating coordinator said that situation set the perception of the officiating community back years. —Chris Vannini, New York Times, 18 June 2025

Fever head coach Stephanie White didn’t hold back in her postgame comments, placing blame squarely on the officiating crew for failing to manage the game’s rising intensity. —Preezy Brown, VIBE.com, 18 June 2025

Meanwhile, Sarah Hyland, who played her older sister Haley Dunphy, married Bachelorette alum Wells Adams in 2022 — and the ceremony was officiated by none other than her on-screen uncle, Ferguson. —Alyssa Davis, People.com, 10 June 2025

Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White didn’t mince words when sharing her thoughts on officiating in the WNBA, which followed Saturday’s game where Caitlin Clark suffered a quad injury that will sideline the star guard for at least two weeks. —Paulina Dedaj, FOXNews.com, 29 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin officiātus, past participle of officiāre "to perform a function, perform priestly duties," going back to Late Latin officiārī "to perform a function," derivative of Latin officium "duty, office"

First Known Use

1623, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Rhymes for officiate

• abbreviate
• accelerate
• accommodate
• accumulate
• acuminate
• adjudicate
• adulterate
• affiliate
• agglomerate
• agglutinate
• alleviate
• amalgamate

Kids Definition

officiate

verb

of·​fi·​ci·​ate ə-ˈfish-ē-ˌāt 

officiated; officiating

1

: to perform a ceremony

officiate at a wedding

2

: to act as an officer

officiated at the annual meeting

3

: to enforce the rules of (a game or sport)

officiate a soccer match