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manager

Etymology and origin of the English word manager

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1588
Ultimate origin
English (manage,-er)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈmæn.ɪ.dʒə/, US /ˈmæn.ɪ.dʒɚ/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English manage + -er.[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

One who directs or controls something: 1588,[4][5] or the 1580s;[2] the OED's first sense also includes the wielder of a weapon.[4]

Semantic evolution

A person skilled in managing affairs or money is from 1670.[4] The specific sense of one who conducts a business establishment or a public institution is from 1705.[2][4] In Parliament, managers were members of either house appointed to carry out some duty together, such as conducting an impeachment, from 1666–7.[4] Johnson (1755) defined a manager as one who has the conduct or direction of anything.[6] In law, a manager was a person appointed by a court of chancery to carry on a business, from 1793.[4] One who organizes the activities of a performer or group is from 1843,[4] and the manager of a sports team is a later extension.[7][8]

Timeline

  • 1588 – one who directs or controls.[4][5]
  • 1666–7 – parliamentary managers.[4]
  • 1670 – one skilled in managing affairs.[4]
  • 1705 – manager of a business or institution.[2][4]
  • 1793 – a manager appointed by a court.[4]
  • 1843 – a performer's manager.[4]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A person who directs a business or other organization, or part of one.
  2. A person who looks after the business affairs of a performer or athlete.
  3. A person in charge of the training and tactics of a sports team.
  4. A person who controls resources and spending, as of a household.

Word family

  • managership
  • managerial
  • managerially
  • submanager
  • undermanager
  • credit manager
  • city manager
  • floor manager

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  7. ^ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  8. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
Cite this entry

“Manager.” Etymologically, 15 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/manager. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

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