civil service

noun

: the administrative service of a government or international agency exclusive of the armed forces
especially : one in which appointments are determined by competitive examination

Examples of civil service in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
La Follette’s national accomplishments included regulation of railroads, other powerful utilities, and lobbyists, civil service and tax reform, resource conservation measures, laws protecting workers’ rights, and candidate nomination by primary election. Nancy C. Unger / Made By History, TIME, 28 Oct. 2024 Trump also has pledged to lower taxes on corporations and the wealthy and to dismantle the traditional civil service to empower his loyalists. Laura J. Nelson, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2024 The Office for National Statistics said growth in earnings including bonuses was 3.8%, but noted annual rates were affected by one-off health and civil service payments made over the summer. Karen Gilchrist,jenni Reid,holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 15 Oct. 2024 Consider the case of lean manufacturing principles applied in the U.K. civil service. Ula Ojiaku, Forbes, 30 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for civil service 

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1770, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of civil service was circa 1770

Dictionary Entries Near civil service

Cite this Entry

“Civil service.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/civil%20service. Accessed 6 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

civil service

noun
: the branch of a government that takes care of the business of running a state but that does not include the lawmaking branch, the military, or the court system
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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