functionary
noun
func·tion·ary
ˈfəŋ(k)-shə-ˌner-ē 
plural functionaries
1
: one who serves in a certain function
2
: one holding office in a government or political party
Did you know?
For most of us, being described as a functionary wouldn't be a compliment. The word refers especially to a person of lower rank, with little or no authority, who must carry out someone else's orders. Bureaucrat is often a synonym. However, functionary can also refer to the world beyond government and offices; a character in a play, for example, could be called a functionary if it was obvious that her sole function was to keep the plot moving.
Examples of functionary in a Sentence
He was a party functionary during the political campaign.
spoke to high-ranking functionaries at the embassy in the hopes that they could help
Recent Examples on the Web
As the German journalist Ronen Steinke argues in his own first-rate biography, Bauer’s greatest achievement was a sprawling trial of some 20 German officers and functionaries at Auschwitz, held in a Frankfurt courtroom in the mid-60s.
—
Gary J. Bass, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2025
The play drew on the verbatim testimony of SS officers, Nazi functionaries and camp survivors, to reconstruct the genocidal horror in harrowing, undeniable detail.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Jan. 2025
The hosts were Peter Yates, a functionary at the California Department of Employment, and his wife, the pianist Frances Mullen.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2025
These latest comments came from party functionaries rather than civilians, and as such have made Modi and the BJP directly accountable for the noticeable rise in Islamophobia in India.
—Sumit Ganguly, Foreign Affairs, 30 June 2022
See All Example Sentences for functionary
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Gary J. Bass, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2025
The play drew on the verbatim testimony of SS officers, Nazi functionaries and camp survivors, to reconstruct the genocidal horror in harrowing, undeniable detail.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Jan. 2025
The hosts were Peter Yates, a functionary at the California Department of Employment, and his wife, the pianist Frances Mullen.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2025
These latest comments came from party functionaries rather than civilians, and as such have made Modi and the BJP directly accountable for the noticeable rise in Islamophobia in India.
—Sumit Ganguly, Foreign Affairs, 30 June 2022
See All Example Sentences for functionary
Cite this Entry
“Functionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/functionary. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
functionary
noun
func·tion·ary
ˈfəŋ(k)-shə-ˌner-ē
plural functionaries
: a person who works for a government or political party
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