commission
n. C / Un. a group of people given the official job of finding information or controlling something. It also means the extra money a salesperson earns for every item they sell.
n. a formal group of persons charged with a specific function or investigative task; alternatively, a percentage of a sale price paid to an agent or employee for their services.
She earns a ten percent commission on every car she sells.
The government established an independent commission to investigate the causes of the recent financial crisis.
While the base salary remains modest, the potential for high commission motivates the sales team to pursue aggressive growth targets in the competitive real estate market.
From Middle English commissioun, from Old French commission, from Latin commissiō (“sending together; commission”), from prefix com- (“with”) + noun of action missiō (“sending”), from perfect passive participle missus (“sent”), from the verb mittō (“to send”) + noun of action suffix -iō.
Compare Italian camicia and Romanian cămeșă.
Countable when referring to a committee or a specific payment; uncountable when referring to the system of payment by results.
The commission of the crime was highThe commission for the sale was highLearners often confuse 'commission' (payment/committee) with 'commission' (the act of doing something bad), though the latter is much rarer in general conversation.