What does commissary mean?
A commissary is a store that supplies food, provisions, and everyday goods within a larger institution — most familiarly the grocery shop on a military base, the snack bar and cafeteria at a film studio where cast and crew eat between scenes, or the small store inside a prison where inmates purchase personal items. The word can also denote a person formally deputized to carry out duties on behalf of a higher authority, a sense rooted in ecclesiastical and diplomatic history. Deriving from the Latin 'commissarius', meaning someone entrusted with a charge or commission, 'commissary' has always implied delegated responsibility or centralized provisioning. Today its connotations are practical and institutional rather than formal; Americans encounter it most often in military and entertainment contexts, while British English retains it chiefly in historical accounts of army supply systems. Its cognates — commissioner, commissar, commissariat — all preserve the idea of authority formally committed to someone's hands.
A store that supplies food and goods within an institution such as a military base, prison, or film studio.
"He bought coffee and canned soup at the post commissary."
A person officially delegated to act or adjudicate on behalf of a superior authority, as in ecclesiastical or diplomatic affairs (historical).
"The papal commissary arrived to settle the long-running dispute over parish boundaries."
The regular plural follows standard English spelling rules, changing '-y' to '-ies'.
"The chain operates commissaries at three of its regional studios."
The word 'commissary' shares its Latin root with 'communist' — both trace back to 'commit', meaning to entrust with a shared task.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of commissary
Commissary comes from the Medieval Latin 'commissarius', meaning a person entrusted with a charge or commission, itself derived from the classical Latin verb 'committere', 'to entrust or join together'. The word entered English in the late sixteenth century, initially referring to an official deputy — whether in church courts, diplomacy, or military administration — and later extended to the stores and departments those officials managed, giving rise to senses like 'commissariat'. It shares its root with 'commission', 'commissioner', and 'commissar', all preserving the core notion of formally entrusted authority.
Related word forms
How commissary is actually used
In American usage today, 'commissary' most often refers to a grocery or convenience store inside a military installation, prison, or film studio, and carries a slightly institutional flavor. The older sense — a delegate empowered by church or civil authority — survives mainly in historical and ecclesiastical contexts. British usage historically favored the military-supply meaning.
Easily confused with commissary
A commissioner is an official appointed to run or oversee something, while a commissary is either a supplying store or the delegate/agent performing duties on another's behalf.
A commissariat is the military department responsible for food and supply logistics, whereas a commissary is the actual store or the individual agent of supply.