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Glite Dictionary
Department of Commerce

Department of Commerce

9 3.8
A United States government department that promotes and makes rules for trade and runs the national census and patent office
  • proper noun
  • /dɪˈpɑrtmənt əv ˈkɑːmɜrs/
  • Formal
translation icon : Departamento de Comercio
  • A 2011 report by the U.S. Department of Commerce found only one in seven engineers is female.
  • U.S. Department of Commerce
  • United States Department of Commerce
  • Census Department of Commerce

Examples

  • The Advanced Technology Program is administered by the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technology.

    Academic text (1999)

  • Let's suppose you're assigned to the Department of Commerce.

    Academic text (1993)

  • Of course, the reason is clear; the Department of Commerce is looking after U.S. industry the world over.

    Academic text (2000)

  • Director, Office of European Community Affairs, U.S. Department of Commerce.

    Academic text (1990)

  • Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Survey of Current Business, November 1996.

    Academic text (1997)

  • Yes, you have a big task ahead in the Department of Commerce to prepare for the next agreement.

    Academic text (1995)

  • The U.S. Department of Commerce holds the patent on one of these applications.

    Academic text (1996)

  • The Department of Commerce was generally unhelpful but did send a packet of materials.

    Academic text (2000)

  • We have actually just signed a Memorandum of Understanding exchanging personnel between the U.S. Department of Commerce and Industry Canada.

    Academic text (1995)

  • The U.S. Department of Commerce regulates international trade agreements to promote economic growth.

Synonyms

Commerce
vsDepartment of Commerce
  • US
333 3.5

A United States government department that promotes trade and runs the census and the patent office

is the multiword official form rather than the shortened label
DoC
vsDepartment of Commerce
  • Formal
87 6.5

A US government department that promotes trade, runs the census, and oversees patents

is the full formal name written out in official contexts
Commerce Department
vsDepartment of Commerce
  • US
50 3.7

A U.S. government department that promotes and regulates trade and runs agencies like the Census and Patent Office

is the formal full name using the official word order

Surface Forms

Department of Commerce main

Morphology

department + of + Commerce

The meaning is directly compositional: 'department' = organizational unit and 'commerce' = trade, with 'of' linking them to indicate responsibility. This government-department naming pattern (e.g., 'Ministry/Department of Commerce') is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents would readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Department of Commerce is a name made from department (a part of government) and commerce (meaning 'trade' or 'business'), so imagine a government office set up to look after trade. That's why today the Department of Commerce is the government office that helps and manages the country's trade and business and runs services like the national census.