ENGLISH
REFERENCE

colleague

n. countable
A2 Elementary Oxford US //ˈkɑɫiɡ// UK //kˈɒliːɡ// col·league Academic General-service

n. someone you work with, especially in a professional job. You usually use this word for people at the same level as you in a company.

n. a person with whom one works, typically in a professional or office context. Often implies a peer relationship rather than a hierarchy between a supervisor and a subordinate.


SIMPLE

I am going to lunch with a colleague from the marketing team.

CONTEXTUAL

After the meeting, my colleague helped me finish the report so we could leave the office on time.

COMPLEX

While they are close friends outside of the office, they maintain a strictly professional relationship as colleagues during business hours to avoid any appearance of bias.

Synonyms
Origin

From Middle French collegue, from Latin collēga (“a partner in office”), from com- (“with”) + lēgō (“to send on an embassy”), from lēx (“law”).

Usage

Commonly used with the preposition 'of' ('a colleague of mine') or as a direct noun ('my colleague').

Pitfall

He is my workmate in the law firm.He is my colleague in the law firm.While 'workmate' is common in casual or manual labor contexts, 'colleague' is the standard term for professional or office environments.

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