- employ
- verb1 pay sb to workADVERB▪ actively, directly▪
By 1960 the arms industry directly employed 3.5 million people.
▪ indirectly▪ currently▪Mark is currently employed as a Professor of Linguistics.
PREPOSITION▪ in▪A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.
PHRASES▪ be fully employed▪ be gainfully employed▪Those not gainfully employed are dependent on their savings.
▪ be permanently employed, be temporarily employed▪ be irregularly employed, be regularly employed2 useADVERB▪ commonly, extensively, frequently, often, regularly, widely▪The safety net is an image commonly employed in everyday life.
▪ generally, primarily, routinely, typically, usually▪ increasingly▪Self-checkout terminals are increasingly employed by retailers.
▪ effectively, successfully, usefully▪ properly▪When properly employed, non-lethal weapons will save lives.
3 be employed be busy doing sthADVERB▪ better▪Your time would be better employed doing something else.
▪ busily, usefullyPREPOSITION▪ in▪Will and Joe were busily employed in clearing out all the furniture.
Employ is used with these nouns as the object: ↑agent, ↑approach, ↑architect, ↑army, ↑assistant, ↑consultant, ↑contractor, ↑crew, ↑design, ↑employee, ↑firm, ↑force, ↑imagery, ↑immigrant, ↑labourer, ↑measure, ↑mercenary, ↑metaphor, ↑method, ↑phrase, ↑practice, ↑procedure, ↑reasoning, ↑rhetoric, ↑servant, ↑staff, ↑strategy, ↑tactic, ↑tank, ↑technique, ↑technology, ↑trainee, ↑trick, ↑tutor, ↑violence, ↑worker, ↑workforce
Collocations dictionary. 2013.