public office
45
3.2
- noun
- /ˈpʌblɪk ˈɔfɪs/
- Formal
:
cargo público
- Many young students are encouraged to consider running for public office to make a difference in their communities.
- hold public office
- run for public office
- be elected to public office
I think that he has the least likability factor that I've ever seen in a public office candidate.
- I think that he has the least likability factor that I've ever seen in a public office candidate.
- And but when I ran for public office, I put that right out there first and and I got every vote in the house.
- We sometimes think that our leaders have to be have fancy degrees or well educated or some public office somewhere.
Examples
-
This is why we need more people like you and me in public office... get this country back on track.
-
Almost all congressmen had occupied public offices in their community or state before they were sent to Washington.
Academic text (1991) -
So would you like to tell all of these people that they should consider running for public office and why?
-
And but when I ran for public office, I put that right out there first and and I got every vote in the house.
-
I have never been elected to public office.
-
I wanted strong women in public office, and she was better than most.
Fiction book (1990) -
You hold a public office, Sheriff.
-
Politicians should have their campaigns for public office paid for by public funds.
Blog text (2) -
Encourage scientists to run for Congress and other public office, and establish a bipartisan science caucus.
Academic text (2003) -
Proponents of getting more women and minorities into public office presume that they "make a difference."
Blog text (10)
Synonyms
∞
1.6
A job with official power in a government or organization
957
3.2
A person's job or rank in a group like a company
382
4.6
A position in a government body that someone wins in an election
1
4.2
The job and time in office of a city's elected leader
How Senior
∞
2.7
- Formal
8
7.0
521
3.5
- Formal
45
3.2
4
3.7
1
3.2
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'public' (for the people/nonprivate) + 'office' (an official post) yields an official position held for the public. This adjective+noun combination is cross-linguistically common and, given context like 'elected to', a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the government/official position sense.
Etymology
Public office comes from two simple ideas: public meaning 'for the people' and office meaning a duty or job someone does. Think of a person at a desk doing official tasks for everyone, and you can see why public office means 'a position of authority or responsibility in government'.