Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective officious contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of officious are impertinent, intrusive, meddlesome, and obtrusive. While all these words mean "given to thrusting oneself into the affairs of others," officious implies the offering of services or attentions that are unwelcome or annoying.

officious friends made the job harder

When is it sensible to use impertinent instead of officious?

The words impertinent and officious are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, impertinent implies exceeding the bounds of propriety in showing interest or curiosity or in offering advice.

resented their impertinent interference

When can intrusive be used instead of officious?

Although the words intrusive and officious have much in common, intrusive implies a tactless or otherwise objectionable thrusting into others' affairs.

tried to be helpful without being intrusive

Where would meddlesome be a reasonable alternative to officious?

In some situations, the words meddlesome and officious are roughly equivalent. However, meddlesome stresses an annoying and usually prying interference in others' affairs.

a meddlesome landlord

When could obtrusive be used to replace officious?

The meanings of obtrusive and officious largely overlap; however, obtrusive stresses improper or offensive conspicuousness of interfering actions.

expressed an obtrusive concern for his safety

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 officious Cronenberg, in turn, has maintained a cool contempt for officious pundits and their agendas. Adam Nayman, The New Yorker, 3 June 2022 As her avenging brother, Laertes, the tenor David Butt Philip is ardent; as her officious father, Polonius, the tenor William Burden avoids caricature. New York Times, 15 May 2022 The soul of this community is local queen bee Sherry Conrad (Search Party alum Shalita Grant, the season’s MVP), an officious, controlling momfluencer with a knack for stealing the spotlight. Judy Berman, Time, 17 Oct. 2021 On their first day, the resort manager (Gustaf Hammarsten) recommends an isolated beach and arranges for the family to be driven there along with a few other tourists, including an officious doctor (Rufus Sewell) and his family. BostonGlobe.com, 22 July 2021 See All Example Sentences for officious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for officious
Adjective
  • Under Armour has also been busy making bigger investments in the performance shoe category.
    Vicki M. Young, Footwear News, 31 Oct. 2025
  • The folks at East Fork have been busy this year.
    Emily Farris, Bon Appetit Magazine, 31 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • The fifth good habit is enforcing a policy of always using the least intrusive method of data collection.
    Keivan Navaie, IEEE Spectrum, 22 Oct. 2025
  • The lighting design with hues of pinks, blues, and violet, are impeccable by David Lander, making sure the changes are sharp but not intrusive to the character’s world.
    Michelle F. Solomon, Miami Herald, 21 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • The fact is, in a newsroom full of meddlesome, sometimes pushy people, Beverly was none of that.
    Brad Schmitt, Nashville Tennessean, 20 Oct. 2025
  • The special ops unit chases every lead possible, from bribes to Mexican drug cartels, a meddlesome L.A. District Attorney (Merrick McCartha) and corruption in the government of Belarus.
    Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 25 June 2025
Adjective
  • There’s a fine line between obtrusive service, with servers buzzing like flies around the table, and inattentive service.
    Rachel Bernhard, jsonline.com, 22 Oct. 2025
  • These harnesses are less obtrusive but easier for cats to escape from.
    BestReviews, Mercury News, 2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • For Blashill, the Blackhawks’ identity is being really, really annoying.
    Mark Lazerus, New York Times, 2 Nov. 2025
  • Sharon is extremely annoying, but my heart does break for her a tiny bit here.
    Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Officious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/officious. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on officious

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!