as in minion
disapproving
a very loyal member of an organization (such as a company or political party) who always obeys orders
party apparatchiks
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Recent Examples of apparatchik
The latest iteration of Venezuela’s long-running crisis began after the head of the National Electoral Council, a Maduro apparatchik, declared him the victor on July 29th, with fifty-one per cent of the vote to forty-four per cent for González.
—
Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 12 Sep. 2024
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi is a laconic apparatchik who lacks the imagination to deal with complicated situations.
—Eric Edelman, Foreign Affairs, 2 Jan. 2023
Khamenei will decide which hardline apparatchik appears on the ballot to replace him.
—Karl Vick, TIME, 23 May 2024
There were several oligarchs who helped Putin rise from a K.G.B. apparatchik in Leningrad to autocrat in the Kremlin.
—Maureen Dowd, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2024
See All Example Sentences for apparatchik
Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 12 Sep. 2024
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi is a laconic apparatchik who lacks the imagination to deal with complicated situations.
—Eric Edelman, Foreign Affairs, 2 Jan. 2023
Khamenei will decide which hardline apparatchik appears on the ballot to replace him.
—Karl Vick, TIME, 23 May 2024
There were several oligarchs who helped Putin rise from a K.G.B. apparatchik in Leningrad to autocrat in the Kremlin.
—Maureen Dowd, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2024
See All Example Sentences for apparatchik
Recent Examples of Synonyms for apparatchik
Noun
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Players are asked to recruit their friends to fight the minions of the titular evil entity, the Deceiver.—
Ryan Coleman,
EW.com,
9 June 2025
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This summer has already given ample evidence of how poorly Trump and his minions understand California.—
Thomas Elias,
Mercury News,
18 July 2025
Noun
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In 1961: After a decree by the Volkskammer, East German soldiers began installing a barbed wire barrier through Berlin.—
Lorenzino Estrada,
AZCentral.com,
12 Aug. 2025
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Tens of thousands of its children will grow up without fathers, and hundreds of thousands of its soldiers will be physically and emotionally scarred.—
Colin Pascal,
Baltimore Sun,
11 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The Amazon Essentials product line offering everyday low prices continues to gain new adherents and now represents one out of every three units sold.—
Pamela N. Danziger,
Forbes.com,
2 Aug. 2025
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There was already a playbook for action, a loyal membership and an understanding that aggressive action would yield new adherents.—
Andrew Lapin,
Sun Sentinel,
29 July 2025
Noun
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Blaming Christos for a substation outage, The Dama’s lackey gassed the lot of ’em and bashed in their heads.—
Charlie Mason,
TVLine,
1 June 2025
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Outside of one good scene between Clark and Lois, almost every frame is constantly packed with characters, whether this is the (admittedly very funny) Justice Gang (Nathan Fillion’s Green Lantern, Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl and Edi Gathegi’s scene-stealing Mister Terrific) or Lex and his lackeys.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
9 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Apparatchik.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/apparatchik. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
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