Definition of bureaucratnext
as in clerk
a worker in a government agency the bureaucrats at the town hall seem to think that we need a building permit to build a tree house

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bureaucrat Biden bureaucrats and political appointees were more interested in protecting their bureaucratic turf than facilitating the care veterans needed. Washington Post, 6 Feb. 2026 Put the undocumented immigrants and lifelong bureaucrats and NATO and blue cities on watch. Abby McCloskey, Twin Cities, 5 Feb. 2026 Today, his brother Raúl Castro is 94, and Cuba’ s nominal president, Miguel Diaz-Canel, is an obscure bureaucrat who has a hard time keeping his audiences awake. Andres Oppenheimer, Miami Herald, 5 Feb. 2026 Freed from the ideologues who have held them hostage, even most bureaucrats serving in the Islamic Republic today could rediscover the best of our history and reorient their efforts toward our nation’s improvement. Arash Azizi, Time, 3 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for bureaucrat
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bureaucrat
Noun
  • The DuPage County clerk was given a court order to take Brown's name off the ballot for not having enough signatures.
    Asal Rezaei, CBS News, 16 Feb. 2026
  • That included a contract with a former clerk to help with the name verification process for the public safety training center referendum brought by critics in an attempt to halt the process.
    AJ Willingham, AJC.com, 16 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • Five people have died, and dozens of others were injured after a massive pileup of more than 30 vehicles in Colorado, officials say.
    Melina Khan, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
  • Yet in 2024, county officials nonetheless gave the coalition a second contract.
    Blake Nelson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • More than funding, though, is needed transparency by IDNR functionaries with marina boaters and Winthrop Harbor officials.
    Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 26 Jan. 2026
  • Their prestige suffers because it is conflated in the public’s mind with long lines at the DMV, fastidious building inspectors, parking tickets—the stuff of local functionaries.
    Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 11 Jan. 2026
Noun
  • Instead, the women and their husbands found out about the data center project from speaking directly to the workers hired to move dirt and dig runoff ditches ahead of construction.
    Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 20 Feb. 2026
  • Amazon has often fielded criticism of its warehouse working conditions, and has been cited in the past for exposing workers to ergonomic hazards.
    Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 20 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • But Calm’s push beyond the consumer business has also given Ko insights into the fraying mental health of the people in charge of those employees.
    Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 20 Feb. 2026
  • Geoff Davis doesn’t want his employees to have to rely on tips.
    Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Bureaucrat.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bureaucrat. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.

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