telecommuter

IPA/ˌtelikəˈmjuːtə(r)/
KK[tˈɛləkəmjˌutɚ]IPA/ˌtelikəˈmjuːtər/

telecommuter — noun

1. a person who does their job from their own home instead of going to a company of

1.nounB2
Definition

a person who does their job from their own home instead of going to a company office, using online tools such as email, video calls, and phone calls to stay in touch with coworkers and finish their work

Example

After becoming a telecommuter, Brian no longer spends two hours each day in rush-hour traffic.

becoming a telecommuter + avoids commuting

The financial firm now hires telecommuters who live in different cities across the country.

hires telecommuters + distributed workforce

Common collocations
  • become a telecommuter
  • work as a telecommuter
  • hire telecommuters
  • support telecommuters
  • telecommuter agreement
  • full-time telecommuter
Synonyms
  • remote worker

    more general term covering anyone who works away from a central office, not necessarily from home

  • home worker

    focuses on the location (home) rather than the technology-mediated connection to an employer

  • digital nomad

    implies a lifestyle where the person travels while working remotely, not tied to one home location

Antonyms
  • commuter

    someone who travels regularly to a central workplace, the opposite of a telecommuter

  • office worker

    a person who works on-site at a company's premises

Grammar Patterns

telecommuter + verb (singular/plural)

Usage Note

This noun is a compound formed from the prefix tele- and the noun commuter. The related verb is telecommute, and the general practice is called telecommuting or teleworking.

Common Mistakes

I am a telecommuter from home every Tuesday.
I telecommute every Tuesday.
'telecommuter' is a noun describing a person's role, not an action; use the verb 'telecommute' for actions.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Telecommuter, remote worker, and teleworker all describe someone who works away from a central office using technology, but with slight differences in emphasis. Telecommuter and teleworker (used more in British English) specifically suggest the person has replaced a daily commute by connecting digitally — the tele- prefix (Greek for 'far') implies a link to a traditional employer. Remote worker is broader and can include anyone working from a coffee shop, a co-working space, or abroad; it does not assume a former commuting relationship. Home worker focuses purely on location (the home) and may include people doing manual or offline jobs. Digital nomad describes a person who travels while working remotely, often freelancing or running their own business, without a fixed home base. Example: 'Padma is a telecommuter for a Taipei bank and visits the office once a week, while her cousin is a digital nomad who edits videos from hostels across Southeast Asia.'

remote workerhome workerdigital nomadteleworker

Common collocations

Nouns

  • telecommuter agreement
  • telecommuter policy
  • telecommuter benefits
  • telecommuter tax

Adverbs

Phrases

  • work as a telecommuter
  • be a telecommuter
  • hire telecommuters

Prepositions

  • as (a telecommuter)
  • for (a company)
  • from (home)

Etymology

GreekLatinEnglish

Formed by combining the prefix 'tele-' (from Greek tēle, meaning 'far' or 'at a distance') with 'commuter' (from Latin commutare, 'to change or exchange', via English 'commute'). The word entered English in the 1970s alongside the rise of digital networking, when futurists began predicting that technology would allow people to work from home instead of commuting to an office. The related term 'telecommuting' was coined by NASA engineer Jack Nilles in 1973.

First known use

1974

1974, in the meaning defined above