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
Relevance
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
Bigelow’s sympathetic eye for her functionaries risks the film being misread as an argument for more robust military funding.
—
Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
Evil is aided and abetted by the banality of institutions and their functionaries.
—Literary Hub, 17 Oct. 2025
Since then, there have been many more arrests—especially of regional functionaries at various levels.
—Andrei Kolesnikov, Foreign Affairs, 8 Sep. 2025
But this newsletter is more focused on how Trump and his fawning functionaries speak about and for him.
—Chris Brennan, USA Today, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for functionary
Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
Evil is aided and abetted by the banality of institutions and their functionaries.
—Literary Hub, 17 Oct. 2025
Since then, there have been many more arrests—especially of regional functionaries at various levels.
—Andrei Kolesnikov, Foreign Affairs, 8 Sep. 2025
But this newsletter is more focused on how Trump and his fawning functionaries speak about and for him.
—Chris Brennan, USA Today, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for functionary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for functionary
Noun
-
All of this is assuming the team actually takes part, which Iranian officials called into question because of the country's war with the United States and Israel.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Federal officials have been quiet about the incident since Tuesday afternoon.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
In the Philippines, government offices are now open just four days a week and bureaucrats must limit the use of air conditioning to nothing cooler than 75°F (24°C).—
Paul Wiseman,
Fortune,
29 Mar. 2026
-
The barrier was a system so centralized, bureaucrats and procedural that even a straightforward literacy effort became tangled in red tape.—
Daniel L Gordon,
Daily News,
29 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Back in the day, only high ranking officers could ascend the staircase.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
5 Apr. 2026
-
Two other people were present with him, but officers have not identified them and did not say they were detained.—
Doug Myers,
CBS News,
5 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Under the model, an occupation scores high on substitution risk when AI can handle most of its core tasks, like insurance claims clerks and bill collectors.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
6 Apr. 2026
-
Michael Sanchez, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County registrar-recorder/county clerk, said that Heidi Pratt was registered to vote in Santa Barbara County.—
Richard Winton,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Chats with friends and co-workers alike can do a lot to improve the flow of your schedule.—
Tarot.com,
Baltimore Sun,
4 Apr. 2026
-
The two started out at the YMCA as community health workers and went back at least a decade.—
Amanda Rosa,
Miami Herald,
4 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
But since the state’s cuts to Medicaid payments for certain services, and the launch of the FBI investigation in 2024, ARC has laid off hundreds of employees and shuttered dozens of facilities, leaving some clients homeless.—
Alex Acquisto,
CNN Money,
9 Apr. 2026
-
The big story In this photograph taken on September 23, 2025, employees work at a garment factory in Tiruppur, in India’s southern state of Tamil Nadu.—
Priyanka Salve,
CNBC,
9 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Functionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/functionary. Accessed 10 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
