Interviewer and interviewee are nouns formed from the root verb “interview.” However, more things connect them besides their root word. Before this interviewer vs interviewee article ends, you will have known a lot about these words.
An interviewer is someone who conducts an interview or asks questions during an interview. On the other hand, an interviewee is a person that answers the questions during an interview or someone that responds to the interviewer. So, an interviewee responds to an interviewer in an interview.
What is the difference between an interviewer and an interviewee? Are both words correct? These are popular questions that experts get all the time, and the rest of this article will give comprehensive answers and more.
Definitions Of Interviewer And Interviewee
You can tell the relationship between these words just by their spellings. The most recognizable thing they have in common is that they both feature the word “interview.” So, “interview” is their root word. A root word is a term through which other words are constructed or formed. Let’s start this section by explaining the definition of the root word (interview) because its meaning will apply to the definitions of “interviewer” and “interviewee.”
An interview is “a formal meeting where one or more people question, evaluate, or assess another purpose for employment or recruitment.” For example, “Jamal attended a job interview last month but did not get an offer.”
Another source defines an interview as “a meeting where a writer, journalist, or reporter asks questions to one or more people for publication in a newspaper or magazine story, television broadcast, or a media outlet.” An example sentence is, “West did not conduct himself appropriately during the interview.”
An interview also means “a report from a conversation or meeting where another person or people question a person or a few people.” Here is an example, “Janna Johnson conducted one of the cleverest interviews in Prime-Time Television.”
Now that the meaning of “interview” is out of the way, we can go back to the meanings of the subjects of our article. So, here are the correct definitions of “interviewer” and “interviewee:”
Definition Of Interviewer
An interviewer is a person that conducts an interview. So, an interviewer assesses, asks questions, or obtains information from the subject of an interview. Let us look at an example sentence: “The interviewer asked the hardest questions at the end of the interview.”
Another reliable source defines an interviewer as “someone that obtains an interview with another person to elicit his opinions and obtain information for publication in print or other media sources.” An example sentence is, “The interviewer got in hot water for asking a personal question even after the guest requested him to steer clear of the subject.”
Definition Of Interviewee
An interviewee is the subject of an interview of the person answering the questions during an interview. An example sentence is, “The interviewee arrived late for the interview and failed to provide accurate answers to all the questions.”
How To Properly Use Interviewer And Interviewee In A Sentence
An interviewer is a person that conducts an interview or asks questions during an interview. On the other hand, an interviewee is a person who answers questions during an interview, and an interview is a formal meeting where one or more people question, evaluate, assess, or consult another person to gather information for employment or publication.
Now that all the definitions are clear, we will discuss using these words in sentences. But first, here are some helpful guidelines:
How To Use The Word Interviewer
This word is a noun. You should use it in a sentence to refer to a person. However, it is a common noun. So, unless it comes at the beginning of a sentence, you need not capitalize it. Again, this word is a countable noun.
That means you can use its plural form (interviewers) in a sentence. For example, “The interviewers did an incredible job making the president feel comfortable enough to share as much of his personal life as he did.”
Use this noun in the following contexts:
- Referring to a person that asks questions or conducts an official inquiry
- A person that interviews someone for a job
- A person that takes part in a conversation
- An organization working in the media sector
How To Use The Word Interviewee
As a countable noun, use this word in its plural or singular form in sentences. For example, “The interviewee was not happy with the questions asked.” (Singular) The interviewees were unhappy with the questions asked. (Plural)
Use this term in the following instances:
- Referring to a person being interviewed
- Referring to someone that submits themselves as a candidate for something, like a job
Interviewer Vs Interviewee: Where To Use These Words
The difference between these words is their last two letters. In English grammar, these letters are known as suffixes. They are word-forming elements added at the end of an existing word to form another word with a different meaning. Below is a more comprehensive explanation of the suffixes “-ee” and “-er.”
In English, the suffix ‘-ee” is a word-forming element that denotes the initiator or recipient of an action. So, if the action is “employ,” then the initiator or recipient of the action is an “employee.” This word-forming element comes from the Anglo-French “-e.”
On the other hand, the word-forming suffix “-er” denotes the performer of an action. For example, if the action is “employ,” the performer is an “employer.” It comes from the Latin “-or” and the Old English “-ere,” meaning “man who has to do with.” This word-forming suffix distinguishes the actor of an action.
Now that this is clear, here are the core instructions regarding where to use these words:
- Use the word “interviewee” when discussing the initiator or recipient of an action. In this case, the action is an interview.
- Use the term “interviewer” when discussing the actor or performer of an action. The action here is also an interview.
List Of Examples Of Interviewer And Interviewee In Sentences
Interviewer and interviewee seem like complicated words at first sight. However, when you get into their meanings and differences, you realize that they are simple words you can use whenever you want. We prepared the example sentences below to show you how easily you can apply these words in sentences.
Example sentences of the word interviewer
- John was the first interviewer to question West about his antisemitic remarks.
- Kelvin is the only interviewer to enter the presidential chambers in the White House.
- The interviewer did not ask the burning questions readers wanted him to ask.
- The media house fired the interviewer for breaking protocol during the interview.
- Dr. Sam appointed David as the interviewer for the mock job interview.
Example sentences of the word interviewee
- The interviewee stormed out of the room when asked about his marital status.
- Oprah is an incredible interviewee; she does not beat about the bushes with responses.
- The interviewee did not respond to all the questions as expected.
- The company canceled the interview after the interviewee failed to arrive on time.
- The interviewee will come back on Thursday for a second interview.
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Conclusion
As long as you understand the meaning of the word “interview” and how the English grammar applies the suffixes “-ee” and “-er,” explaining the difference between interviewee and interviewer should be easy. Note that these suffixes also apply to other words like employer and employee. So, the information in this article should come in handy when differentiating other words too. Feel free to use these words whenever the context allows.
Shawn Manaher is the founder and CEO of The Content Authority. He’s one part content manager, one part writing ninja organizer, and two parts leader of top content creators. You don’t even want to know what he calls pancakes.