Meaning & use
emcee
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Meanings
nouncountable
A person who hosts an event and introduces the performers or speakers.
Grammar: Countable; often used for events like concerts, award shows, or weddings.
Patterns
- act as emcee
- the emcee of the event
The emcee welcomed everyone to the stage.
She was the emcee for the charity gala.
A good emcee keeps the audience engaged.
verbtransitive or intransitive
To act as the host of an event, introducing speakers or performers.
Grammar: Can be used with or without an object: 'She emceed the show' or 'He emceed at the festival.'
Patterns
- emcee an event
- emcee a show
He emceed the talent show last night.
She has emceed many conferences.
They asked him to emcee at the wedding.
Word forms
| plural | emcees |
|---|---|
| third person singular | emcees |
| past tense | emceed |
| past participle | emceed |
| -ing form | emceeing |
Common combinations
- act as emcee
- She agreed to act as emcee for the evening.
- emcee a wedding
- He will emcee a wedding next month.
- the emcee introduced
- The emcee introduced the first speaker.
- professional emcee
- They hired a professional emcee for the conference.
Synonyms and how they differ
- host
- Host is a more general term for someone who welcomes guests; emcee specifically introduces performers or speakers.
- presenter
- Presenter is common in British English for someone who introduces a show; emcee is more American and event-focused.
- master of ceremonies
- This is the full phrase that 'emcee' stands for; it is more formal.
Commonly confused: emcee or MC?
emcee vs MC
MC is the abbreviation for master of ceremonies; emcee is the spelled-out version. In hip-hop, MC also means a rapper.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'emcee' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Emcee as a verb takes a direct object: emcee the ceremony. Option 3 is less natural because 'emcee for' is not the usual pattern.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “emcee”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.