functionary

noun

ˈfəŋ(k)-shə-ˌner-ē How to pronounce functionary (audio)
Definition of functionarynext
1
as in official
a person who holds a public office spoke to high-ranking functionaries at the embassy in the hopes that they could help

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in bureaucrat
a worker in a government agency the faceless functionaries at the Internal Revenue Service

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 functionary In Meyer’s hands, the adventuress sometimes recedes into a functionary. — David Denby, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026 Pernkopf was a Nazi functionary who became dean of the medical faculty in 1938 and rector of the university in 1943. — Jason Snyder, Forbes.com, 8 Aug. 2026 Both Washington and Mexico City have launched crackdowns against a complex web of unscrupulous functionaries, front companies and document fraudsters, among others. — Foreign Correspondent, Los Angeles Times, 3 Aug. 2026 But Díaz-Canel is largely viewed by experts as a functionary, a loyalist without much true authority. — Ellen Uchimiya, CBS News, 19 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for functionary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for functionary
  1. official
  2. bureaucrat
  3. officer
  4. clerk
  5. worker
  6. employee
Noun
  • Federal officials contend the voters’ citizenship must be verified before their ballots are counted and requested that the ballots be set aside.
    — Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 3 Nov. 2026
  • Last week, a federal appeals court declined to order California officials to set aside those ballots.
    — Austin Turner, CBS News, 3 Nov. 2026
Definition of official
Noun
  • Politicians can seize headlines, bureaucrats can push papers, and voters can dig into local hegemony.
    — David Bloomfield, New York Daily News, 1 Nov. 2026
  • When courts signal to those same bureaucrats that fees won't be awarded, noncompliance costs them literally nothing.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of bureaucrat
Noun
  • The service's Inspector Jeff Tyre said in a video message that the second body had been found in a search by Royal Canadian Mounted Police and conservation officers on Tuesday afternoon after the discovery of the first set of remains a day earlier.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 6 Nov. 2026
  • Brendt Volarvich shot and killed Stevens in November 2005 after the officer pulled him over in rural Yolo County.
    — Michael McGough, Sacbee.com, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of officer
Noun
  • Elections clerks around California in the week before the election were sent subpoenas to testify before grand juries slated to convene in November.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 7 Nov. 2026
  • Minnie creeps out of her shell, signing up to sing in the talent show and developing a crush on a video store clerk (Iman Vellani).
    — Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of clerk
Noun
  • Civil defense workers and residents in the city of Deir al-Balah searched through the rubble largely using their bare hands.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 9 Nov. 2026
  • The company also said that, depending on the application, a single AIR unit could handle workloads equivalent to as many as three workers per shift.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 9 Nov. 2026
Definition of worker
Noun
  • Early returns also showed voters favoring Measure A, which would establish binding arbitration for sheriff’s deputies, firefighters and other public safety employees who by law cannot go on strike.
    — Itzel Luna, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2026
  • Mauldin, chair of the city’s Planning Commission and an employee of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, emphasized responsible growth, affordable housing and improvements to roads, public transit and utilities.
    — Jennah Pendleton, Sacbee.com, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of employee

Browse Nearby Words

functionaries
functionary
functioned
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Cite this Entry

“Functionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/functionary. Accessed 9 Nov. 2026.

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