Standard Lemma guide

personnel

noun · 5 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • US: /pɝ.səˈnɛl/
  • US: /pɝsˈnɛl/
  • UK: /pɜː.səˈnɛl/
  • UK: /pɜːsˈnɛl/
  • New-Zealand: /pɵː.sɘˈnɛl/
  • New-Zealand: /pɵːsˈnɛl/
  • New-Zealand: /-el/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ɛl
  • CMU ARPABET: P ER2 S AH0 N EH1 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Collection of people in an organization, such as employees and office staff, members of the military, etc.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A member of an organization such as an army.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, nonstandard

Qualifier: plural personnel

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

A human resources department.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Examples

  • I've just had a letter from personnel.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

the department responsible for hiring and training and placing employees and for setting policies for personnel management

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: personnel department, personnel office, staff office

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: department, section

5

noun

Meaning 5

group of people willing to obey orders

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • a public force is necessary to give security to the rights of citizens

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: force

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: organization, organisation

Narrower terms: guerrilla force, guerilla force, military service, armed service, service, military, armed forces, armed services, military machine, war machine, paramilitary, paramilitary force, paramilitary unit, paramilitary organization, paramilitary organisation, police, police force, constabulary, law, security force, private security force, military police, MP, work force, workforce, manpower, hands, men, patrol, military personnel, soldiery, troops, rank and file, rank, staff, line personnel, management personnel

History

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from French personnel. Doublet of personal.

Across languages

Translations

55 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Azerbaijani: şəxsi heyət — members of an organization
  • Belarusian: персана́л (pjersanál) — members of an organization
  • Belarusian: пэрсана́л (persanál) — members of an organization
  • Belarusian: асабо́вы саста́ў (asabóvy sastáw) — members of an organization
  • Belarusian: асабо́вы склад (asabóvy sklad) — members of an organization
  • Bulgarian: персона́л (personál) — members of an organization
  • Bulgarian: ли́чен съста́в (líčen sǎstáv) — members of an organization
  • Chinese Cantonese: 人員 /人员 (jan4 jyun4) — members of an organization
  • Chinese Cantonese: 員工 /员工 (jyun4 gung1) — members of an organization
  • Literary Chinese: 員 (yuán) — members of an organization
  • Chinese Mandarin: 人員 /人员 (rényuán) — members of an organization
  • Chinese Mandarin: 員工 /员工 (yuángōng) — members of an organization
  • Danish: personale — members of an organization
  • Danish: personel — members of an organization
  • Danish: mandskab — members of an organization
  • Dutch: personeel — members of an organization
  • Dutch: medewerkers — members of an organization
  • Finnish: henkilökunta — members of an organization
  • Finnish: henkilöstö — members of an organization
  • French: personnel — members of an organization
  • Georgian: პერსონალი (ṗersonali) — members of an organization
  • Georgian: კადრები (ḳadrebi) — members of an organization
  • Georgian: შტატი (šṭaṭi) — members of an organization
  • German: Personal — members of an organization
  • Hebrew: סֶגֶל (segel) — members of an organization
  • Hungarian: személyzet — members of an organization
  • Ido: personaro — members of an organization
  • Indonesian: personel — members of an organization
  • Indonesian: personil — members of an organization
  • Italian: personale — members of an organization
  • Japanese: 人員 (jin'in) — members of an organization
  • Japanese: 職員 (shokuin) — members of an organization
  • Korean: 인원 (inwon) — members of an organization
  • Korean: 직원 (jigwon) — members of an organization
  • Malagasy: olona — members of an organization
  • Malay: kakitangan — members of an organization
  • Norwegian Bokmål: personell — members of an organization
  • Polish: personel — members of an organization
  • Polish: kadra — members of an organization
  • Portuguese: pessoal — members of an organization
  • Romanian: personal — members of an organization
  • Russian: ли́чный соста́в (líčnyj sostáv) — members of an organization
  • Russian: персона́л (personál) — members of an organization
  • Russian: штат (štat) — members of an organization
  • Slovene: osebje — members of an organization
  • Spanish: personal — members of an organization
  • Spanish: plantel — members of an organization
  • Swedish: personal — members of an organization
  • Turkish: personel — members of an organization
  • Turkish: çalışanlar — members of an organization
  • Turkish: kadro — members of an organization
  • Ukrainian: персона́л (personál) — members of an organization
  • Ukrainian: особо́вий склад (osobóvyj sklad) — members of an organization
  • Volapük: pösodef — members of an organization
  • Welsh: personél — members of an organization
Real reading context

personnel in complete knowledge articles