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civil servants

noun

plural of civil servant
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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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 civil servants The money was nominally to pay civil servants and prop up infrastructure in a territory sequestered by an Israeli blockade, but many observers agreed that Hamas diverted a significant sum to its military wing. — Ruth Margalit, New Yorker, 19 Sep. 2026 Unfortunately, many, specifically our dedicated federal civil servants, have been undermined, laid off, pushed out. — Brendan Griffith, New York Daily News, 7 Sep. 2026 Such a large amount is a shock to ordinary civil servants who earn six or seven thousand yuan a month. — Jonathan Flint, Harpers Magazine, 1 Sep. 2026 This year, Rosstat stopped providing data on the salaries of civil servants, teachers, and doctors; on Russians’ spending on housing and utilities; and on household income and expenditure. — Andrei Soldatov, Foreign Affairs, 31 Aug. 2026 Rotterdam’s Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen has become central to a local corruption scandal, due to the conduct of civil servants who allegedly accepted bribes to grant exorbitant construction contracts for public work. — News Desk, Artforum, 31 Aug. 2026 Other governments, including the US, have their own rules and disclosure requirements, but beyond the breadth of the controls in China, the sheer number of people affected is striking – and reaches far beyond civil servants. — Sylvie Zhuang, CNN Money, 16 Aug. 2026 According to the Partnership for Public Service, more than 200,000 civil servants left the federal workforce in 2025 through voluntary and involuntary separations aimed at reducing head count. — Arkansas Online, 9 Aug. 2026 Burnham plans to work there at least one day a week, alongside a full-time staff of aides, experts and civil servants. — ABC News, 1 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for civil servants
  1. officials
  2. public servants
  3. employees
  4. bureaucrats
  5. workers
  6. clerks
Noun
  • That meeting occurred after Russian missiles and drones struck at least four Ukrainian regions overnight, strikes that officials said killed five people.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 23 Sep. 2026
  • In 1953 Arizona state officials organized another raid on Short Creek in which more than 100 were arrested and over 200 children were taken into state custody (they were reunited with their families two years later).
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of officials
Noun
  • Twenty-five years later, South Florida will honor the lives lost and sacrifices made by first responders and other public servants on 9/11.
    — Michael Butler, Miami Herald, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Corporate vice presidents can learn from academics, entrepreneurs and public servants.
    — Siri Swahari, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of public servants
Noun
  • September 24, 2026 AI is rapidly changing how top leaders communicate with employees, customers, boards, and each other.
    — Harvard Business Review, Harvard Business Review, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Folklore intentionally awards $10,000 grants rather than spreading the money across a larger number of smaller awards, with the goal of providing enough funding for investments such as equipment, additional space or employees.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of employees
Noun
  • The bureaucrats who failed to prevent the fraud often remain anonymous.
    — Sreedhar Potarazu, Baltimore Sun, 19 Aug. 2026
  • America’s goal should be more cures, more treatment options and better care, not fewer innovations dictated by Washington bureaucrats.
    — Steve Forbes, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of bureaucrats
Noun
  • Parents ship young children abroad; white-collar professionals become fast-food workers; migration cleaves young lovers.
    — Sanjena Sathian, Vulture, 22 Sep. 2026
  • While both lawsuits were brought on antitrust grounds, the WGA focused heavily in its own suit about the impact that the merger would have on workers.
    — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of workers
Noun
  • County clerks and election officials must have their ballots prepared by Saturday under federal law.
    — Jack Harvel, Kansas City Star, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Election clerks raised similar concerns directly to USPS officials just days before the final rule was issued, at a mid-August National Association of Election Officials conference in Kansas City, Missouri, ProPublica has learned.
    — Jen Fifield, ProPublica, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of clerks

Browse Nearby Words

civil servant
civil servants
civil union
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Cite this Entry

“Civil servants.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/civil%20servants. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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