as in officials
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
Relevance
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 bureaucrats
The bureaucrats operating Obamacare couldn’t care less about the taxpayers footing the bill.
—
Betsy McCaughey, Boston Herald, 18 Jan. 2026
The children of wealthy law-firm partners and humble bureaucrats attended the same schools.
—Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 11 Jan. 2026
Likewise, empowering state bureaucrats to value individual portfolios – which are often illiquid and not easy to value – is textbook government bloat, something national voters have no tolerance for.
—Douglas Schoen, Oc Register, 9 Jan. 2026
Removing those financial incentives would allow care to be organized around quality and access rather than distorting care into forms most favored by bureaucrats.
—Tomas J. Philipson, Fortune, 9 Jan. 2026
It's been nearly a decade since The Night Manager ensnared viewers in its sticky web of arms dealers, secret agents, and dodgy bureaucrats.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 8 Jan. 2026
Thankfully, Iran already has online platforms, created by nongovernmental organizations, that citizens can use to register complaints about policies and bureaucrats.
—Mohammad Javad Zarif, Foreign Affairs, 22 Dec. 2025
In a recent blog post, Cato Institute Scholar Colleen Hroncich said bureaucrats and policymakers make the big decisions in public school systems.
—Center Square, The Washington Examiner, 17 Dec. 2025
Parents, not bureaucrats, should be making decisions about their children’s education, aligned with their values.
—Hollie Silverman, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2025
Betsy McCaughey, Boston Herald, 18 Jan. 2026
The children of wealthy law-firm partners and humble bureaucrats attended the same schools.
—Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 11 Jan. 2026
Likewise, empowering state bureaucrats to value individual portfolios – which are often illiquid and not easy to value – is textbook government bloat, something national voters have no tolerance for.
—Douglas Schoen, Oc Register, 9 Jan. 2026
Removing those financial incentives would allow care to be organized around quality and access rather than distorting care into forms most favored by bureaucrats.
—Tomas J. Philipson, Fortune, 9 Jan. 2026
It's been nearly a decade since The Night Manager ensnared viewers in its sticky web of arms dealers, secret agents, and dodgy bureaucrats.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 8 Jan. 2026
Thankfully, Iran already has online platforms, created by nongovernmental organizations, that citizens can use to register complaints about policies and bureaucrats.
—Mohammad Javad Zarif, Foreign Affairs, 22 Dec. 2025
In a recent blog post, Cato Institute Scholar Colleen Hroncich said bureaucrats and policymakers make the big decisions in public school systems.
—Center Square, The Washington Examiner, 17 Dec. 2025
Parents, not bureaucrats, should be making decisions about their children’s education, aligned with their values.
—Hollie Silverman, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bureaucrats
Noun
-
College basketball officials, according to those in the business, are taught not to make calls from the baseline through a tangle of bodies, instead deferring to one of your partners trailing the play.—
Mark Zeigler,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 Jan. 2026
-
The legal battles and war of words between local and federal officials have mirrored the contentious scene on the ground in the state.—
Zac Anderson,
USA Today,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The memo was included in a disclosure to senators by Whistleblower Aid, a nonprofit legal organization, based on information provided by two of their clients, government employees who are not named in the document.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
24 Jan. 2026
-
So when an attack sends most employees into its shelter, at least two people must remain at the control panel to manage the system.—
Svitlana Vlasova,
CNN Money,
24 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Any payments to the court, like court or license fees, that weren’t made electronically would’ve been given to the court’s accounting clerks, who then set them up for deposit.—
Sofi Zeman
January 16,
Kansas City Star,
16 Jan. 2026
-
Recent articles have identified the concerns of Colorado county clerks about possible attacks on our elections in 2026.—
DP Opinion,
Denver Post,
14 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
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
-
Proposal 5 was actually a bit of skilled electoral craft on the part of the city’s map functionaries.—
Adam Gopnik,
New Yorker,
4 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Crews began treating highways with brine after midnight Saturday, with 1,800 workers on 12-hour shifts, Georgia Department of Transportation Commissioner Russell McMurry said.—
Dan Raby,
CBS News,
25 Jan. 2026
-
That act – passed in the wake of a wave of terror by government workers affiliated with racist groups like the Ku Klux Klan – does not apply to federal employees and could not be used in a case against Ross.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
25 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bureaucrats.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bureaucrats. Accessed 28 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
