officeholder

noun

of·​fice·​hold·​er ˈä-fəs-ˌhōl-dər 

ˈȯ-

: one holding a public office

Synonyms

• functionary
• officer
• official
• public servant

Examples of officeholder in a Sentence

the last officeholder was extremely conscientious about not using public funds for his personal gain

Recent Examples on the Web

Two prominent women officeholders—Secretary of State Shenna Bellows and former Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives Hannah Pingree—have already declared candidacy in Maine’s Democratic primary to replace incumbent, and term-limited, Governor Janet Mills (D). —Kelly Dittmar, Forbes.com, 17 June 2025

Those taxpayer contributions, well into the billions each year now, make no dent in these pension deficits if officeholders keep moving the goalposts farther away through more generous benefits. —The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 13 June 2025

Anyone would be hard-pressed to argue that those increases by Democratic officeholders have produced breakthroughs on the state’s most-pressing issues. —Dan Walters, Mercury News, 7 June 2025

So far, Republicans have one candidate in the primary, Rep. Buddy Carter (R-Ga.), while several other officeholders have expressed interest in jumping in. —Filip Timotija, The Hill, 10 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1787, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for officeholder

• policyholder
• beholder
• bondholder
• cardholder
• freeholder
• householder
• landholder
• leaseholder
• lienholder
• placeholder
• shareholder
• slaveholder

Kids Definition

officeholder

noun

of·​fice·​hold·​er -ˌhōl-dər 

: a person holding a public office