Meaning & use
a manager
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Meanings
nouncountable
a person who controls or organizes part of a company or organization
Grammar: Used with 'a' or 'the': 'She is a manager.' Can be followed by 'of' or 'for': 'manager of a store'.
Patterns
- a manager of something
- a manager for a company
- a manager at a place
The manager of the restaurant greeted every customer.
He was promoted to manager after five years.
nouncountableBritishsport
a person who is in charge of a sports team, especially in football
Grammar: In British English, 'manager' is common for football; in American English, 'coach' is more usual for most sports.
Patterns
- the manager of a team
- a football manager
The team's manager was criticized for the loss.
She became the first female manager of the club.
nouncountablebusiness
a person who handles the business affairs of an entertainer or athlete
Grammar: Often used with a possessive: 'her manager'.
Patterns
- someone's manager
- an artist's manager
The singer's manager negotiated a new contract.
He hired a manager to handle his bookings.
Word forms
| plural | managers |
|---|
Common combinations
- general manager
- The general manager oversees all departments.
- project manager
- The project manager set the deadline.
- assistant manager
- She works as an assistant manager at the bank.
- become a manager
- He became a manager at just 25.
Synonyms and how they differ
- supervisor
- A supervisor directly oversees workers' daily tasks, while a manager often has broader planning and budget duties.
- director
- A director is usually higher in rank and responsible for a whole department or company.
- boss
- Informal; 'boss' can refer to any person in charge, not necessarily with the formal title of manager.
Opposites
Word family
- manage verb
- to be in charge of or to succeed in doing something
- management noun
- the act of controlling or organizing something; also the group of managers
- managerial adjective
- relating to a manager or management
- manageress noun
- old-fashioned term for a female manager
Commonly confused: a manager or director?
a manager vs director
A director is often a member of the board or a senior executive, while a manager is typically more involved in day-to-day operations.
Practice
After the team lost five games, the ___ decided to change the strategy.
Choose one answer.
The sentence needs a singular person noun to make the decision. 'Manager' fits. 'Management' is the group or activity, 'managerial' is an adjective, and 'manage' is a verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “a manager”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.