command
noun · verb
Simple meaning
An order telling someone what to do; also control over something.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
kuhmandSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
kəˈmænd
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
The right or authority to order, control or dispose of; the right to be obeyed or to compel obedience.
An authoritative direction or instruction to do something
A position of chief authority; a position involving the right or power to order or control.
A position of highest authority
“The corporation has just undergone a change in command.”
Power of control, direction or disposal; mastery.
The act of commanding; exercise or authority of influence.
verb
transitive
To require with authority; to demand, order, enjoin.
transitive
To exact, compel or secure by influence; to deserve, claim.
transitive
To hold, to control the use of.
transitive
To dominate through ability, resources, position etc.; to overlook.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A2 · Elementary
- Frequency
- Very Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: The right or authority to order, control or dispose of; the right to be obeyed or to compel obedience.
Used this way, command is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use command
- “The corporation has just undergone a change in command.”noun
- “The general commanded a huge army.”verb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Similar Words, What’s the Difference?
Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.
An influence or authority over something.
An order or command.
The act of ordering or commanding.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
An officer in command of a military unit.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
The processing time required by a device prior to the execution of a command.
Military headquarters from which a military commander controls and organizes the forces.
The processing time required by a device prior to the execution of a command.
The processing time required by a device prior to the execution of a command.
A symbol that appears on the computer screen to indicate that the computer is ready to receive a command.
A noncommissioned officer serving as chief administrative officer of a headquarters unit of the Army.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
An officer in command of a military unit.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.