Meaning & use
clerk
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Meaning
nouncountable
A person employed in an office, shop, or court to keep records, handle paperwork, or assist customers.
Grammar: Countable; use a clerk or clerks: The clerk helped me.
Patterns
- a clerk in a shop
- a clerk at a hotel
- a court clerk
The clerk at the hotel gave us our room key.
She works as an office clerk, filing documents and answering calls.
The court clerk read the charges aloud.
Word forms
| plural | clerks |
|---|
Common combinations
- sales clerk
- The sales clerk showed us several jackets.
- office clerk
- He started as an office clerk.
- court clerk
- The court clerk stamped the papers.
- bank clerk
- The bank clerk counted the money carefully.
Synonyms and how they differ
- assistant
- A general helper in a shop or office; a clerk often has more specific record-keeping or customer duties.
- receptionist
- Someone who greets visitors and answers phones; a clerk may also handle paperwork or sales.
- secretary
- Often a personal assistant who manages correspondence and schedules; a clerk's work is usually more routine.
Word family
- clerical adjective
- Relating to office work or clerks.
Commonly confused: clerk or clerk?
clerk vs clerk
In British English, 'clerk' is pronounced /klɑːk/ and often means an office or legal worker; in American English it is /klɜːrk/ and often means a shop or hotel worker.
Practice
In American English, which sentence uses 'clerk' in the most common way?
Choose one answer.
In American English, 'clerk' most often refers to a shop or hotel worker who assists customers. The other options describe office or legal work, which is more common in British English.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “clerk”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.