staff Definition

staff
noun staffs (plural in senses 1-3), staffs (plural in senses 4-6), staves

1a. The total number of employees working in an establishment or organization;

Thesaurus: personnel, workers, employees, assistants, crew, team, cadre, cast, organization.
1b. The employees working for or assisting a manager.
2. The teachers, lecturers, etc of a school, college, university, etc as distinct from the pupils or students.
3. military.
The officers assisting a senior commander, as adj.
Example: staff sergeant
4. Any stick or rod, especially one that is carried in the hand as a sign of authority, dignity, etc.

Thesaurus: stick, club, pole, wand, cane, rod, stave.
5. A pole that a flag is hung from.

Form: flagstaff (also)
6. music.
A set of lines and spaces on which music is written. Also called stave.

verb

staffed, staffing
1. To provide (an establishment) with staff.

adj

1. Employed on a permanent basis.

Derivative: staffed
adj

Note: in compounds

Example: found themselves understaffed

Etymology: Anglo-Saxon staf.

Info:

There is often uncertainty as to whether collective nouns such as staff should be followed by a singular or plural verb. Either is correct, depending on whether the group is being thought of as a single unit or as a number of individuals.