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
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2
as in bureaucrat
a worker in a government agency
the faceless functionaries at the Internal Revenue Service
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of functionary
Unlike the party functionaries picked previously, all three grew up in the labor movement.
—
John Samuelsen, New York Daily News, 11 Feb. 2025
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
See All Example Sentences for functionary
John Samuelsen, New York Daily News, 11 Feb. 2025
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
See All Example Sentences for functionary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for functionary
Noun
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Already, these officials have turned their new powers on COVID vaccines, some of which are still authorized only for emergency use.—
Katherine J. Wu,
The Atlantic,
17 May 2025
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Kremlin officials will most likely remember the Soviet Union’s withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989 after an inconclusive war, which angered many veterans and contributed to the collapse of the Communist state.—
Anatoly Kurmanaev,
New York Times,
17 May 2025
Noun
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This bill gives more power to the same bureaucrats that created this mess and asks ratepayers to trust them again.—
Matthew Medsger,
Boston Herald,
13 May 2025
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The former sees the latter as a pro-European traitor and а success symbol born of the imperial decline that Soviet-era bureaucrats have yet to accept.—
Nick Paton Walsh,
CNN Money,
12 May 2025
Noun
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Lawyers for the Harris County traffic cop said missteps by an officer prior to an escalating event do not strip them of the right to self-defense thereafter.—
Maureen Groppe,
USA Today,
16 May 2025
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And even after a formal investigation began, Alexander stuck with his story, responding to criticism on social media, and even accused DNR officers of attempting to frame him.—
Alex Robinson,
Outdoor Life,
15 May 2025
Noun
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Court documents suggest Dugan was alerted to the agents' presence by her clerk, who was informed by an attorney that the agents appeared to be in the hallway.—
Jacob Rosen,
CBS News,
13 May 2025
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The ‘Appellate Guru’: Alexandra A.E. Shapiro Founding partner of New York firm Shapiro Arato Bach, Shapiro began her legal career more than 30 years ago serving as one of Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s first clerks.—
Claudia Rosenbaum,
Vulture,
13 May 2025
Noun
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Their team also includes social workers and intervention specialists.—
Dominique Fluker,
Essence,
10 May 2025
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The dorm rooms are lined with lockers and bunk beds, which workers decorate with colorful blankets.—
Melissa Gomez,
Los Angeles Times,
10 May 2025
Noun
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Murati, who was known at OpenAI for her management skills and execution prowess, recruited 20 OpenAI employees before announcing her company in February.—
Anna Tong,
USA Today,
22 May 2025
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Rather than revisiting or adjusting these costly mandates, Moore has added to the burden — creating new state agencies and setting a goal of hiring 10,000 new state employees.—
Justin Ready,
Baltimore Sun,
21 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Functionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/functionary. Accessed 24 May. 2025.
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