[staff] n, pl staffs or staves [ME staf, fr. OE staef; akin to OHG stab staff, Skt stabhnati he supports] (bef. 12c) 1 a: a long stick carried in the hand for support in walking b: a supporting rod: as (1) archaic: shaft 1a(1) (2): a crosspiece in a ladder or chair: rung (3): flagstaff (4): a pivoted arbor c: club, cudgel
2. a: crosier b: a rod carried as a symbol of office or authority
3: the horizontal lines with their spaces on which music is written--called also stave
4: any of various graduated sticks or rules used for measuring: rod
5. pl staffs a: the officers chiefly responsible for the internal operations of an institution or business b: a group of officers appointed to assist a civil executive or commanding officer c: military or naval officers not eligible for operational command d: the personnel who assist a director in carrying out an assigned task e pl staff : a member of a staff -- staff adj
[2]staff vt (1859) 1: to supply with a staff or with workers
2: to serve as a staff member of [3]staff n [prob. fr. G staffieren to trim] (1892): a building material having a plaster of Paris base and used in exterior wall coverings of temporary buildings