administrative

adjective

ad·​min·​is·​tra·​tive əd-ˈmi-nə-ˌstrā-tiv 

-strə-

: of or relating to administration or an administration : relating to the management of a company, school, or other organization

administrative tasks/duties/responsibilities

administrative expenses/costs

a hospital's administrative staff

… these schools are given wide latitude in creating their teaching programs as long as they meet certain academic standards; they are also freed from many of the administrative and hiring rules governing traditional public schools.

—Suzanna Andrews

Synonyms

• directorial
• executive
• managerial
• supervisory

Examples of administrative in a Sentence

She has an administrative job.

among his other administrative duties is the appointment of transit authority officials

Recent Examples on the Web

While the government has announced more than 200,000 cuts, Capital Economics said many federal employees have been placed on administrative leave or accepted deferred retirement and are still counted as employed. —Paul Davidson, USA Today, 2 May 2025

The spokesperson said Caldwell had been placed on administrative leave. —Chris Spargo, People.com, 2 May 2025

Read: An ‘administrative error’ sends a Maryland father to a Salvadoran prison At least some of the hundreds of other immigrants who have been deported to CECOT appear to have been targeted simply for having the wrong tattoos. —Ali Breland, The Atlantic, 1 May 2025

According to the lawsuit, 85% of AmeriCorps’ staff were placed on administrative leave earlier this month as part of the Department of Government Efficiency’s cost-cutting efforts. —Jade Walker, CNN Money, 30 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

administr(ation) + -ative

First Known Use

1651, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing administrative

• administrative county
• administrative law

Rhymes for administrative

• accommodative
• accumulative
• adjudicative
• agglutinative
• ameliorative
• appreciative
• assimilative
• associative
• authoritative
• collaborative
• cooperative
• deliberative

Kids Definition

administrative

adjective

ad·​min·​is·​tra·​tive əd-ˈmin-ə-ˌstrāt-iv 

-strət-

: of or relating to administration

an administrative position

Legal Definition

administrative

adjective

ad·​min·​i·​stra·​tive əd-ˈmi-nə-ˌstrā-tiv 

1

: of or relating to the performance of a function : ministerial

administrative communications include…instructions that encourage a jury to continue its deliberations

—National Law Journal

2

: of or relating to the executive branch of a government compare legislative, judicial

3

: of or relating to a government agency

administrative remedies