as in officials
a worker in a government agency
took the examination to become a civil servant in the defense department
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of civil servants
Many mullahs have become, in effect, civil servants in turbans.
—
Bobby Ghosh, Time, 5 Mar. 2026
That’s why civil servants in national security, disaster relief and federal science have long taken pains to avoid the political fray.
—Michael Chertoff, The Orlando Sentinel, 4 Mar. 2026
The government has yet to appoint a chair to lead the commission, which has not formed investigative teams and will initially be run by civil servants assigned to receive and register cases.
—ABC News, 25 Feb. 2026
Brown, who has taken a leading role in demanding accountability for Britons with ties to Epstein, sent letters to six police forces suggesting that civil servants be questioned about Mountbatten-Windsor’s decade as a trade envoy, before he was forced to step down in 2011.
—Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 23 Feb. 2026
Last year, approximately three hundred and fifty-two thousand civil servants left their jobs, fulfilling one of the Administration’s stated goals of dismantling the government bureaucracy and demoralizing the federal workforce.
—Jonathan Blitzer, New Yorker, 17 Feb. 2026
The best way to begin this journey is to bring people into this system by expanding Medicare to civil servants, military, police, and teachers.
—Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Feb. 2026
All told, the agency lost more than 17,000 civil servants through firings and resignations in 2025—including many scientific leaders at the FDA, CDC and NIH.
—Dan Vergano, Scientific American, 13 Feb. 2026
Gezi gave way to crackdowns and an administrative witch hunt that saw thousands of academics, judges, journalists, lawyers, and civil servants jailed.
—Literary Hub, 10 Feb. 2026
Bobby Ghosh, Time, 5 Mar. 2026
That’s why civil servants in national security, disaster relief and federal science have long taken pains to avoid the political fray.
—Michael Chertoff, The Orlando Sentinel, 4 Mar. 2026
The government has yet to appoint a chair to lead the commission, which has not formed investigative teams and will initially be run by civil servants assigned to receive and register cases.
—ABC News, 25 Feb. 2026
Brown, who has taken a leading role in demanding accountability for Britons with ties to Epstein, sent letters to six police forces suggesting that civil servants be questioned about Mountbatten-Windsor’s decade as a trade envoy, before he was forced to step down in 2011.
—Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 23 Feb. 2026
Last year, approximately three hundred and fifty-two thousand civil servants left their jobs, fulfilling one of the Administration’s stated goals of dismantling the government bureaucracy and demoralizing the federal workforce.
—Jonathan Blitzer, New Yorker, 17 Feb. 2026
The best way to begin this journey is to bring people into this system by expanding Medicare to civil servants, military, police, and teachers.
—Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Feb. 2026
All told, the agency lost more than 17,000 civil servants through firings and resignations in 2025—including many scientific leaders at the FDA, CDC and NIH.
—Dan Vergano, Scientific American, 13 Feb. 2026
Gezi gave way to crackdowns and an administrative witch hunt that saw thousands of academics, judges, journalists, lawyers, and civil servants jailed.
—Literary Hub, 10 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for civil servants
Noun
-
Peters was convicted of state crimes for sneaking in an outside computer expert to copy images of her county's election computer system before and after state officials updated it in 2021.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
6 Mar. 2026
-
The best way to protect yourself during an earthquake is to drop, cover and hold on, officials say.—
CA Earthquake Bot,
Sacbee.com,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
But dismissing public servants as lazy, overpaid or uncaring ignores the reality of the people doing the work — and undermines our ability to attract the talent needed to govern well.—
John Atkinson,
Chicago Tribune,
2 Mar. 2026
-
The perpetrators were not children, but knowledgeable adults who willfully chose to harass public servants.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
26 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Staffers—from front desk employees to valet—never missed a beat and were full of helpful information both about the hotel, its offerings, and the surrounding area.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
7 Mar. 2026
-
Every March, the first Friday is dedicated to appreciating employees by their employers and supervisors, a tradition that began in 1995.—
Josh Kelly,
Oklahoman,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Playing fast and loose with federal funds could reflect an issue within a singular agency — inadequate leadership, bad direction or rogue bureaucrats, for example.—
Steve Arentz,
Baltimore Sun,
2 Mar. 2026
-
Trump is the one person who can stop this proposal with one word to the federal bureaucrats who put forth this plan.—
Shane Weddle,
The Orlando Sentinel,
25 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Steps from the Capitol's West Front and where the worst of the fighting occurred, workers quietly have installed a plaque honoring the officers, three years after it was required by law to be erected.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
8 Mar. 2026
-
In Kharkiv, in Ukraine's northeast, emergency workers were combing the rubble, looking for survivors.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
7 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Mackinac Island's tourist season is mainly from May through October, and the island needs about 5,000 seasonal workers each year to work as baristas, front desk attendants, wait staff, retail clerks and housekeepers.—
Jalen Williams,
Freep.com,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Of the 221 positions being cut — which include paraeducators, assistants, clerks, custodians, special-education staff, food service staff and more — 88 are already vacant, the district said.—
Jemma Stephenson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Civil servants.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/civil%20servants. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
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