civil servant

noun

1

: a member of a civil service

2

: a member of the administrative staff of an international agency

Synonyms of civil servant

• public servant
• clerk
• official
• employee
• worker
• bureaucrat

Examples of civil servant in a Sentence

took the examination to become a civil servant in the defense department

Recent Examples on the Web

The postwar model of a large welfare and regulatory state, run by a class of civil servants charged with modernizing the economy, tempering market forces and defining the common good, has run its course. — Nicholas Bequelin, Time, 16 Oct. 2026

At the meeting, ministry Undersecretary Khaled Al-Raqab told the union that the amount was not a tax, but rather a donation sought by the ministry to help pay civil servants in the strip. — ABC News, 15 Oct. 2026

Britain’s 2025 Copilot trial, with 20,000 civil servants, showed workers saved about 26 minutes a day. — Inzamam Rashid, Fortune, 14 Oct. 2026

Local governments are running deficits, with many struggling to pay teachers and civil servants their salaries and benefits on time. — Carl Minzner, Foreign Affairs, 5 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1767, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for civil servant

• fervent
• maidservant
• manservant
• observant