Synonyms of functionary

functionary

noun

ˈfəŋ(k)-shə-ˌner-ē 

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

• official
• officer
• administrator
• manager
• executive
• director
• officeholder
• bureaucrat
• public servant
• commissioner
• superintendent
• supervisor
• chair
• regulator
• chairman
• flunky
• underling
• head
• minion
• co-official

2

as in bureaucrat

a worker in a government agency

the faceless functionaries at the Internal Revenue Service

Synonyms & Similar Words

• bureaucrat
• official
• clerk
• worker
• employee
• mandarin
• civil servant
• public servant
• officeholder
• underling
• hireling
• jobholder
• officiary
• hand

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of functionary

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

But as the courts whittle away at the power of government functionaries to interpret vague congressional statutes, at least one federal agency has apparently chosen lawless rebellion. — Editorial, Boston Herald, 5 Nov. 2025

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