adjutant
- 01 C1 Advanced
n.a military officer whose job is to help a more senior officer with office work and organization.
n.a staff officer who assists a commanding officer by handling administrative tasks, correspondence, and personnel matters.
Simple“The colonel asked his adjutant to prepare the reports for the morning meeting.”
In context“The adjutant was responsible for coordinating the battalion's logistics and ensuring that all official orders were distributed to the company commanders.”
UsageCommonly used in military contexts to describe a specific administrative rank or role.
- 02 C2 Proficiency
n.a very large bird from the stork family that lives in India and Southeast Asia.
n.any of several large storks of the genus Leptoptilos, characterized by a heavy bill and a neck pouch.
Simple“We saw a greater adjutant standing by the river during our trip to India.”
In context“Conservationists are working to protect the nesting grounds of the greater adjutant, a stork species that has become increasingly rare in Southeast Asia.”
UsageUsually appears as 'greater adjutant' or 'lesser adjutant' in biological descriptions.
Synonyms - 03 C2 Proficiency
adj.describing someone who helps a person in a higher position.
adj.serving as an assistant or helper to a superior officer or official.
Simple“He held an adjutant position within the local government office.”
In context“The adjutant professor provided essential support to the department head during the curriculum review process.”
UsageRarely used as an adjective in modern English outside of specific formal titles.
Synonyms
Probably partly from Spanish ayudante and partly Portuguese ajudante (“assistant, helper, aide”), use as nouns of adjectives from the present participles of Spanish ayudar and Portuguese ajudar, respectively, from Latin adiūtō (“to help, assist”), with remodeling after Latin adiūtāns, present participle of adiūtō, from adiuvō (“to help, assist”) + -tō (frequentative suffix).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.