Organiser

How to spell organiser

9 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce organiser

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does organiser mean?

1. nounA person who plans and coordinates an event, group, or activity.
2. nounA case, folder, or device for keeping documents, tools, or appointments in order.

Organiser in a sentence

• The wedding organiser confirmed the seating plan a week before the ceremony.

• He kept his receipts in a leather organiser in the desk drawer.

• As chief organiser of the conference, she handled the speakers and the venue.

• A small drawer organiser kept the cutlery neatly separated.

Where does organiser come from?

Language of origin: Greek

The root is the Greek organon, which literally meant a tool or instrument for getting work done, and which also gave us the bodily 'organ' and the musical 'organ'. Latin adopted it as organum, and Medieval Latin formed the verb organizare, meaning to give an orderly structure or to furnish with parts. French passed this on as organiser, and English borrowed the verb 'organise' in the seventeenth century with the sense of arranging things into a working whole. From the verb, the agent noun 'organiser' was built with the suffix -er to name the person who arranges. The British spelling keeps the French and Greek-flavoured -ise, so the trap is resisting the American -izer; the vowel before that ending is an unstressed schwa, which is why the 'a' in organ- is easy to mishear when writing.

How the word is built

• organ- (from Greek organon: tool, instrument)
• -ise (verb-forming suffix)
• -er (agent/instrument noun suffix)

British and American spelling

Organiser is the British spelling. American English spells it organizer.