lobbyist

noun

lob·​by·​ist ˈlä-bē-ist How to pronounce lobbyist (audio)
plural lobbyists
: one who conducts activities aimed at influencing or swaying public officials and especially members of a legislative body on legislation : a person engaged in lobbying public officials
The new rule says that if you were a registered lobbyist in the past two years, you can't work for the administration on any issue you touched. After you leave government, you can't lobby the administration at all.Jacob Weisberg
Because so many lobbyists have past experience on Capitol Hill, they usually have personal ties both to members of congress and to their key staffers, who vet and prioritize the earmark requests.Ken Silverstein

Examples of lobbyist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The pharmaceutical industry’s all-out attack on President Biden’s drug negotiation initiative for Medicare — comprising nine federal lawsuits (so far) and lots of heavy breathing by lobbyists — has just run into a major snag. Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024 During the Reagan era, the lobbyist Paul Manafort—who would go on to be Trump’s 2016 campaign chairman—made a fantastically lucrative living by trying to bolster the image of autocrats as latter-day incarnations of Thomas Jefferson. Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 1 Mar. 2024 Despite urgent calls for change, opposition by agricultural lobbyists, coupled with weak regulatory mechanisms have threatened the health of consumers and ecosystems— particularly in the highly vulnerable Global South. Daphne Ewing-Chow, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 The payments were allegedly part of an effort by an aviation lobbyist, Karlheinz Schreiber, to win Canadian contracts for his clients, including Airbus. Brian Murphy, Washington Post, 29 Feb. 2024 After the texting scandal, Ginni Thomas, the lobbyist and politically active wife of Clarence Thomas, who had worked closely with Clanton as an adviser to Turning Point, unofficially adopted Clanton as the couple’s protégée. Jane Mayer, The New Yorker, 29 Feb. 2024 Idaho official warns of bribes, threats As threats made the rounds in the Capitol last month, word got to Secretary of State Phil McGrane, who sent a letter to lobbyists warning them about the criminal penalties for bribes and threats. Ian Max Stevenson, Idaho Statesman, 20 Feb. 2024 Online records with the Missouri Ethics Commission list her among the active lobbyists representing the company since 2004. Bill Lukitsch, Kansas City Star, 24 Feb. 2024 Many technological companies seek to form a circle of lobbyists who can demonstrate the capabilities of the technology to potential customers. Nadezhda Kosareva, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lobbyist.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1842, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of lobbyist was in 1842

Dictionary Entries Near lobbyist

Cite this Entry

“Lobbyist.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lobbyist. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

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