policymaker

noun

pol·​i·​cy·​mak·​er ˈpä-lə-sē-ˌmā-kər 

variants or less commonly policy maker or policy-maker

plural policymakers also policy makers or policy-makers

: someone who is responsible for or involved in establishing policy

economic policymakers

He had been a policymaker under four Republican and Democratic Presidents and had spent years on Capitol Hill fencing with congressional committees and lobbying for votes.

—William Greider

Examples of policymaker in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Why aren’t more progressive policymakers pushing for more data centers in their communities? — Torrey Snow, Baltimore Sun, 11 Nov. 2026

The fresh data arrived at a delicate moment for the central bank, where policymakers are weighing a rate increase that could help tackle inflation but risks a slowdown in hiring. — Max Zahn, ABC News, 10 Nov. 2026

The central bank kept interest rates steady in late October following a quarter-point hike in September, with analysts now parsing economic data and policymaker remarks for hints as to its calculus going into December's meeting. — Hugh Cameron, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Nov. 2026

The proposal came at a time when other states and federal policymakers are debating how to tax extreme wealth and finance public services, and how Proposition 40 was viewed as a bellwether. — Tim Fang, CBS News, 10 Nov. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1868, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for policymaker

• automaker
• boilermaker
• cabinetmaker
• coffeemaker
• troublemaker
• undertaker
• blackacre
• caretaker
• clockmaker
• dressmaker
• filmmaker
• homemaker