English · Word Candidate

commanding

/kəˈmændɪŋ/

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Also seen as: commandings

Sense 1

Meaning · English

Tending to give commands, authoritarian.

Adjective

Examples

Nothing was too small to receive attention, if a supervising eye could suggest improvements likely to conduce to the common welfare. Mr. Gordon Burnage, for instance, personally visited dust-bins and back premises, accompanied by a sort of village bailiff, going his round like a commanding officer d

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 2

Meaning · English

Impressively dominant; very good and impressive.

Adjective

Examples

a commanding structure

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 3

Meaning · English

The act of giving a command.

Noun

Examples

God could then have dispelled their ignorance by revealing to them that He had issued those commands; the fact of the occurrence of the earlier commandings would be the content of the revelation.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “commanding” mean?

Tending to give commands, authoritarian.

Is “commanding” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.