STAFF

I. noun (plural ~s or staves) Etymology: Middle English staf, from Old English stæf; akin to Old High German stab ~, Sanskrit stabhnāti he supports Date: before 12th century 1. a long stick carried in the hand for support in walking, a supporting rod: as, shaft 1a(1), a crosspiece in a ladder or chair ; rung , flag~ , a pivoted arbor, club , cudgel , 2. crosier , a rod carried as a symbol of office or authority, the horizontal lines with their spaces on which music is written, any of various graduated sticks or rules used for measuring ; rod , 5. plural ~s the officers chiefly responsible for the internal operations of an institution or business, a group of officers appointed to assist a civil executive or commanding officer, military or naval officers not eligible for operational command, the personnel who assist a director in carrying out an assigned task, a member of a ~ , ~ adjective II. transitive verb Date: 1859 to supply with a ~ or with workers, to serve as a ~ member of