/ Sign up
English (UK)

Meaning of command in English

command
noun
uk
/kəˈmɑːnd/ us
/kəˈmænd/

command noun (ORDER)

Add to word list Add to word list
B2 [ C ]
an order, especially one given by a soldier:
at someone’s command You will run forward at (= when you hear) my command.
give the command When I give the command, fire!
obey a command He hated being in the army because he had to obey commands.
C2 [ U ]
control over someone or something and responsibility for him, her, or it:
have command over At that time, a Roman consul had command over two legions, or roughly 12,000 soldiers.
Colonel Sailing has command over the Guards Regiment.
in command of Ronnie found himself in command of 250 men.
take command of Lee took command of the Confederate Army in 1862.
under the command of The soldiers were under the command of a tough sergeant major.
More examplesFewer examples
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Instructions and orders
See more results »

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

command noun (COMPUTER)

C1 [ C ]
an instruction to a computer to perform a particular action
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Instructions and orders
See more results »

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

command noun (KNOWLEDGE)

B2 [ S or U ]
a great knowledge of a subject and an ability to use that knowledge:
have a command of She has an impressive command of the English language.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Skill, talent and ability
See more results »

command noun (VIEW)

[ S ] formal
a view:
the castle's position with its command of the surrounding countryside
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Geography: scenery & views
See more results »

Grammar

Commands and instructions
We often use an imperative in commands, and we also use must. They both sound very direct: …
Giving commands
We often use an imperative in commands, and we also use must. They both sound very direct: …
Giving instructions
We use instructions to tell someone how to do something. We usually use imperatives. They do not sound too direct in this context: …

Idioms

at your command
be in command (of yourself)
command
verb
uk
/kəˈmɑːnd/ us
/kəˈmænd/

command verb (ORDER)

[ I or T ]
to give someone an order:
[ + to infinitive ] The officer commanded his men to shoot.
[ + that ] He commanded that the troops (should) cross the water.
[ I or T ]
to control someone or something and tell him, her, or it what to do:
Colonel Sailing commands the Guards Regiment.
More examplesFewer examples
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Giving orders & commands
See more results »

command verb (RECEIVE)

[ T ]
to deserve and get something good, such as attention, respect, or a lot of money:
command respect She was one of those teachers who just commanded respect.
She commands one of the highest fees per film in Hollywood.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Getting, receiving and accepting
See more results »

command verb (VIEW)

[ T ] formal
to give a view:
command a view The master bedroom commands a view of rolling green hills.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Geography: scenery & views
See more results »
Command
noun [ C ]
uk
/kəˈmɑːnd/ us
/kəˈmænd/
a group of soldiers or an area controlled by a commander:
Western Command
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Parts of armies & groups of servicemen
See more results »
(Definition of command from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

command | American Dictionary

command
verb [ T ]
us
/kəˈmænd/

command verb [T] (ORDER)

Add to word list Add to word list
to give someone an order or orders with authority:
The police commanded the driver to stop the car.

command verb [T] (RECEIVE)

to deserve and receive because of special qualities or actions:
She commands one of the highest salaries in Hollywood.
command
noun
us
/kəˈmænd/

command noun (KNOWLEDGE)

[ U ]
a good knowledge of something and the ability to use it:
The study of physics requires a command of mathematics.

command noun (ORDER)

[ C/U ]
an order, or the authority to give orders:
[ C ] “When I give the command, fall in!” the officer shouted.
[ U ] General MacArthur took command of (= took military control over) United Nations forces in South Korea.
[ C/U ]
In computing, a command is an instruction to a computer to perform a specific action.
(Definition of command from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

command | Business English

command
noun [ C ]
uk
/kəˈmɑːnd/ us
Add to word list Add to word list
IT
an instruction to a computer:
Jobs in manufacturing are more likely to involve typing in commands on a computer than pulling levers on machines.
(Definition of command from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of command

command
The action requested by the command, if valid, is performed.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These patients remained unable to follow simple commands or communicate reliably.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The judge sets things in order and commands the herald to proclaim them.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Then the robot is commanded to align the surgical tool to the planned surgical tool path and to reach the tumor targets.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Some languages not only allow for word-final consonants but command their presence.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
In the presence of such a block structure, the explicit discard command is no longer needed, so we remove it from the language.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
It is interesting to note the quality of the torque signals used to command the robot.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
She maintains a graceful and engaging style of writing and commands the reader's attention throughout.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
It allows the user to specify with great precision, and yet economy of commands, the spectral envelope of a sound.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Members admired the power and simplicity of the construction, the unified arrangement of the design and its ability to command a wide visual field.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
For an efficient implementation of editing commands, we represent trees in a form in which the types of all subtrees are shown.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
There were more than twenty sensitive commands, but several generals held multiple appointments.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Regime theories suggest that a partisan agenda will strongly influence personnel decisions, which include discretionary military command appointments.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Administration, from its presidential centre, was reunified into a single hierarchical apparatus, grounded in ' unity of command '.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
It is exactly this position that makes the freedom to command diverse actions consistent with the supervenience thesis.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
See all examples of command
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

Collocations with command

command

These are words often used in combination with command.

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

central command
On the issue of an apology, it is regrettable that central command has a different view.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
command arrangements
That would obviously apply to defence plans and to contingency military command arrangements.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0
command centre
It attracted other important industries and also became a service command centre for the military.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
See all collocations with command
What is the pronunciation of command, Command?
 

Translations of command

in Chinese (Traditional)
命令, （尤指軍人發出的）命令，指示, 指揮…
See more
in Chinese (Simplified)
命令, （尤指军人发出的）命令，指示, 指挥…
See more
in Spanish
orden, mando, ordenar…
See more
in Portuguese
comando, ordem, ordenar…
See more
in more languages
in Marathi
in Japanese
in Turkish
in French
in Catalan
in Dutch
in Tamil
in Hindi
in Gujarati
in Danish
in Swedish
in Malay
in German
in Norwegian
in Urdu
in Ukrainian
in Telugu
in Bengali
in Czech
in Indonesian
in Thai
in Vietnamese
in Polish
in Korean
in Italian
आज्ञा, हूकूम, हूकमत…
See more
命令, 指揮（権）, （コンピュータ）コマンド…
See more
komuta, kontrol, emir…
See more
ordre [masculine], commandement, commande [feminine]…
See more
ordre, comandament, ordenar…
See more
bevelen, afdwingen, bevel…
See more
ஒரு உத்தரவு, குறிப்பாக ஒரு சிப்பாய்க்கு வழங்கக்கூடிய ஒன்று, யாரோ அல்லது ஏதோவொன்றின் மீது கட்டுப்பாடு மற்றும�� அவருக்கான பொறுப்பு…
See more
(प्रायः एक सैनिक द्वारा दिया गया) आदेश, कमान, किसी विषय पर अच्छी पकड़…
See more
ઓર્ડર, આદેશ, (સામાન્ય રીતે સૈનિક દ્વારા આપવામાં આવે છે)…
See more
befale, beordre, kommandere…
See more
befalla, ha (föra) befälet över, kommendera…
See more
mengarah, perintah, berkuasa…
See more
befehlen, kommandieren, einflößen…
See more
kommando [masculine], ordre [masculine], herredømme [neuter]…
See more
حکم, آرڈر, فرمان (بالخصوص فوجی کا)…
See more
наказувати, командувати, керувати…
See more
ఆజ్ఞ లేదా ఆదేశం ఇచ్చుట . ముఖ్యంగా ఒక సైనికుడి చేత ఇవ్వబడే ఆజ్ఞ ., ఒక వ్యక్తి పైన లేదా ఒక వస్తువు పైన అధికారం కలిగి ఉండడం..మరియు అతని/ఆమె /ఆ వస్తువు పట్ల బాధ్యత కలిగి ఉండడం., ఒక విషయం మీద మంచి అవగాహన కలిగి ఉండడం /పట్టు కలిగి ఉండడం.మరియు ఆ జ్ఞానాన్ని ఉపయోగించే సామర్థ్యం కలిగి ఉండడం.…
See more
আদেশ, বিশেষত কোনো সেনার, কারও ওপরে বা কোনো বস্তুর ওপরে নিয়ন্ত্রণ এবং তার দায়িত্ব…
See more
nařídit, velet, zasloužit si…
See more
memerintah, mengepalai, memiliki…
See more
สั่ง, มีอำนาจเหนือ, สั่งการ…
See more
ra lệnh, chỉ huy, có đủ tư cách…
See more
dowództwo, polecenie, rozkaz…
See more
명령, 지휘, 명령어…
See more
ordine, comando, comandare…
See more
Need a translator?

Get a quick, free translation!

Translator tool
 

Browse

comity
comity of nations
comm
comma
command
command and control
command center
command centre
command economy

Word of the Day

frictionless

UK
/ˈfrɪk.ʃən.ləs/
US
/ˈfrɪk.ʃən.ləs/

without any friction (= the force that makes it difficult for an object to slide across or move through something)

About this

Blog

Dog-tired (Ways of saying ‘tired’)

New Words

Norwegian life-cleaning

More new words
has been added to list
English (UK)   Change
English (UK) English (US) Español Português 中文 (简体) 正體中文 (繁體) Dansk Deutsch Français Italiano Nederlands Norsk Polski Русский Türkçe Tiếng Việt Svenska Українська 日本語 한국어 ગુજરાતી தமிழ் తెలుగు বাঙ্গালি मराठी हिंदी
Follow us
Choose a dictionary
  • Recent and Recommended
  • Definitions
    Clear explanations of natural written and spoken English
    English Learner’s Dictionary Essential British English Essential American English
  • Grammar and thesaurus
    Usage explanations of natural written and spoken English
    Grammar Thesaurus
  • Pronunciation
    British and American pronunciations with audio
    English Pronunciation
  • Translation
    Click on the arrows to change the translation direction.
    Bilingual Dictionaries
    • English–Chinese (Simplified) Chinese (Simplified)–English
    • English–Chinese (Traditional) Chinese (Traditional)–English
    • English–Danish Danish–English
    • English–Dutch Dutch–English
    • English–French French–English
    • English–German German–English
    • English–Indonesian Indonesian–English
    • English–Italian Italian–English
    • English–Japanese Japanese–English
    • English–Norwegian Norwegian–English
    • English–Polish Polish–English
    • English–Portuguese Portuguese–English
    • English–Spanish Spanish–English
    • English–Swedish Swedish–English
    Semi-bilingual Dictionaries
    English–Arabic English–Bengali English–Catalan English–Czech English–Gujarati English–Hindi English–Korean English–Malay English–Marathi English–Russian English–Tamil English–Telugu English–Thai English–Turkish English–Ukrainian English–Urdu English–Vietnamese
  • Dictionary +Plus
    Word Lists
Contents
My word lists

To add command to a word list please sign up or log in.

Sign up or Log in
My word lists

Add command to one of your lists below, or create a new one.

More
Go to your word lists
Tell us about this example sentence: