ＯＬ

also: オー・エル

JLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 10,000

Meanings

abbreviationsensitive

Abbreviation of 'office lady', referring to a female office worker, typically in a clerical or administrative role. The term is somewhat dated and can be considered sensitive or stereotypical; modern usage often prefers more neutral terms like 会社員 or 女性社員.

Usage patterns

〈人ひと〉はＯＬだはおーえるだsomeone is an OL (female office worker)
姉あねは今いま、都と内ないの会かい社しゃでＯＬをしている。
My older sister is currently working as an OL at a company in Tokyo.
ＯＬとして働くおーえるとしてはたらくto work as an OL
彼かの女じょは大だい学がく卒そつ業ぎょう後ご、ＯＬとして働はたらき始はじめた。
After graduating from university, she started working as an OL.
ＯＬになるto become an OL
彼かの女じょは将しょう来らい、ＯＬになりたいと言いっている。
She says she wants to become an OL in the future.

Related words

OL sense 1
オフィスレディー is the full, more formal form of the term, while ＯＬ is the everyday abbreviation used in casual speech and writing.
会かい社しゃ員いんN5sense 1
会社員 is a gender-neutral term for a company employee, whereas ＯＬ specifically denotes a female office worker, often with clerical connotations.
サラリーマンN3sense 1
サラリーマン traditionally refers to a male office worker, forming a gendered pair with ＯＬ, which refers to a female office worker.
事じ務む員いんN1
OL (office lady) is a gendered, colloquial term for female office workers, while 事務員 is gender-neutral and describes the clerical role itself.

Written forms

ＯＬ
オー・エル
Explicitly syllabified reading, sometimes used in dictionaries or for clarity. Not a common written form.

Etymology

Wasei-eigo (Japanese-made English) abbreviation of 'office lady'. The term emerged in the post-war era to describe women in clerical office roles. The other senses are direct abbreviations of English loanwords: 'overlap' and 'orienteering'.