1
as in official
a person who holds a public office
spoke to high-ranking functionaries at the embassy in the hopes that they could help
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2
as in bureaucrat
a worker in a government agency
the faceless functionaries at the Internal Revenue Service
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of functionary
Unlike the party functionaries picked previously, all three grew up in the labor movement.
—
John Samuelsen, New York Daily News, 11 Feb. 2025
As the German journalist Ronen Steinke argues in his own first-rate biography, Bauer’s greatest achievement was a sprawling trial of some 20 German officers and functionaries at Auschwitz, held in a Frankfurt courtroom in the mid-60s.
—Gary J. Bass, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2025
The play drew on the verbatim testimony of SS officers, Nazi functionaries and camp survivors, to reconstruct the genocidal horror in harrowing, undeniable detail.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Jan. 2025
The hosts were Peter Yates, a functionary at the California Department of Employment, and his wife, the pianist Frances Mullen.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for functionary
John Samuelsen, New York Daily News, 11 Feb. 2025
As the German journalist Ronen Steinke argues in his own first-rate biography, Bauer’s greatest achievement was a sprawling trial of some 20 German officers and functionaries at Auschwitz, held in a Frankfurt courtroom in the mid-60s.
—Gary J. Bass, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2025
The play drew on the verbatim testimony of SS officers, Nazi functionaries and camp survivors, to reconstruct the genocidal horror in harrowing, undeniable detail.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Jan. 2025
The hosts were Peter Yates, a functionary at the California Department of Employment, and his wife, the pianist Frances Mullen.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for functionary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for functionary
Noun
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Buffett said the board of directors would be meeting May 4 and could discuss his recommendation, which could be made official later in the year.—
Mike Snider,
USA Today,
4 May 2025
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Federal and state officials have also noted concerns about MS-13 activity within the prison system and its broader implications for public safety.—
Jasmine Baehr,
FOXNews.com,
3 May 2025
Noun
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This bill gives more power to the same bureaucrats that created this mess and asks ratepayers to trust them again.—
Matthew Medsger,
Boston Herald,
13 May 2025
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Lawyers would be stripped of their independence, serve those in power rather than society at large, and function as bureaucrats, not strategists.—
Mark A. Cohen,
Forbes.com,
12 May 2025
Noun
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The officer who fired told investigators that the suspect pointed a gun at him during the chase, said Cincinnati's police chief.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
3 May 2025
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The tragedy has struck a nerve across India, from the general public to military officers and government officials.—
Michael Kugelman,
Time,
3 May 2025
Noun
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Court documents suggest Dugan was alerted to the agents' presence by her clerk, who was informed by an attorney that the agents appeared to be in the hallway.—
Jacob Rosen,
CBS News,
13 May 2025
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The ‘Appellate Guru’: Alexandra A.E. Shapiro Founding partner of New York firm Shapiro Arato Bach, Shapiro began her legal career more than 30 years ago serving as one of Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s first clerks.—
Claudia Rosenbaum,
Vulture,
13 May 2025
Noun
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Their team also includes social workers and intervention specialists.—
Dominique Fluker,
Essence,
10 May 2025
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On average, a college graduate earns $32,000 more in a year than a worker with only a high school diploma, according to a new report from Federal Reserve economists.—
Daniel de Visé,
USA Today,
10 May 2025
Noun
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Technically, federal holidays are applicable only to federal employees and the District of Columbia, meaning states individually determine their legal holidays, according to the Congressional Research Service.—
Kathryn Palmer,
USA Today,
9 May 2025
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All this is the painstaking work of Hazel Chatman, now in her late seventies, who’s been a public employee for forty-seven years and a caretaker of the city’s beach bathrooms for thirty.—
Shauna Lyon,
New Yorker,
9 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Functionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/functionary. Accessed 18 May. 2025.
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