Thesaurus results for BUREAUCRATS

bureaucrats

noun

plural of bureaucrat

as in officials

a worker in a government agency the bureaucrats at the town hall seem to think that we need a building permit to build a tree house

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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 bureaucrats Vying for dominance as well are the haughty, self-serving bureaucrats of the area’s bustling capital of South Wood (Jemaine Clement, Marc Evan Jackson), who pull their political strings from the relative safety of the grand Pittock Mansion. — Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026 Half of them want to hand health care over to government bureaucrats, the other half to corporate bureaucrats. — Wcco Staff, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026 Modern-day courtiers and princes–to say nothing of bureaucrats–should not be the ones deciding what gets made and who gets to see it. — Christopher Koopman, Fortune, 9 Oct. 2026 These are scientists, academics, and bureaucrats speaking with their own distinct terminology and often talking past one another. — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 6 Oct. 2026 But elevating the whims of progressive activists and government bureaucrats above the wisdom of the marketplace has proven a costly mistake and undermined consumer choice. — Arkansas Online, 5 Oct. 2026 These innovations may reduce the number of bureaucrats autocrats need. — Seva Gunitsky, Foreign Affairs, 1 Oct. 2026 At the same time, some critics worried that the Obama-era guidance had gone too far, tasking college bureaucrats with investigating criminal allegations and diluting due process. — Lauren Mascarenhas, CNN Money, 30 Sep. 2026 The prosecutor was aware that some people viewed career officials who had remained at the Justice Department as comparable to the bureaucrats who had dutifully followed orders in Nazi Germany. — Eyal Press, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bureaucrats

Noun

The proposal returned to the Baltimore County Council Tuesday, reigniting discussion over compensation for the county’s highest-ranking officials as some government employees continue pressing for higher pay.

— Natalie Jones, Baltimore Sun, 28 Oct. 2026
Unusual weather conditions played a role, officials said, with the number of extreme heat warning days tripling from five in 2025 to 15 so far this year.

— Melissa Gomez, Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2026

Definition of officials

Noun

According to local media reports, employees in Area A, where the laboratory is located, were instructed to shelter in place for approximately 30 minutes.

— Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 29 Oct. 2026
For perspective, 41% goes to coverage of other brand-name specialty drugs taken by 6,500 employees.

— Ben Smith, semafor.com, 29 Oct. 2026

Definition of employees

Noun

So were several lawyers and the election clerks of two of Utah’s twenty-nine counties.

— Barton Gellman, New Yorker, 25 Oct. 2026
Bill Essayli, the top federal prosecutor in Los Angeles, said that the clerks who didn't comply with the government's demands could face prosecution as well.

— ABC News, ABC News, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of clerks

Noun

Its magical forest is filled with talking animals, tree-worshipping mystics, scheming functionaries, and the Dowager Governess (Carey Mulligan), an enchantress who commands an army of uniformed coyotes.

— Alison Willmore, Vulture, 23 Oct. 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

Definition of functionaries

Noun

But the movement has widened to include workers demanding relief from rising living costs, making the government’s task broader than resolving a dispute over university admissions.

— Thomas Adamson, Los Angeles Times, 27 Oct. 2026
Also according to the emergency service, consecutive Russian strikes on a shopping center in Kharkiv injured four people late on Saturday, including three rescue workers.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 26 Oct. 2026

Definition of workers

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bureaucratic

bureaucrats

bureaus

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“Bureaucrats.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bureaucrats. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of bureaucrats

noun

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