as in official
a worker in a government agency the officious mandarins in the motor vehicles department refused to let me renew my license without all of the required forms

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 mandarin Kan and Noda, both former finance ministers, are now criticized as lapdogs of Tokyo's powerful mandarins, chiefly because of their willingness to raise taxes. Takashi Yokota, Foreign Affairs, 19 Sep. 2011 Two brown bears, a lion, a couple of yaks, five cockatoos, 25 pheasants and 40 mandarin ducks. Kim Hjelmgaard, USA TODAY, 21 Nov. 2024 Dishes are seasonal and inventive, with ingredients either straight from their kitchen garden or from other parts of this bountiful state: expect seared tuna from Port Lincoln with chili and mandarin oil, and risotto with asparagus as green as those vineyards. Arati Menon, Condé Nast Traveler, 18 Dec. 2024 According to some of our cultural mandarins, objecting to graphic material in grade-school libraries and the presence of men in women’s sports, embracing displays of patriotic vexillology, and enjoying The Lord of the Rings are all signs of far-right extremism. Jack Butler, National Review, 1 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for mandarin 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mandarin
Noun
  • Trump officials slam New York judge Several Trump administration officials criticized Engelmayer’s decision Sunday.
    Bart Jansen, USA TODAY, 11 Feb. 2025
  • The scam email, which appears to come from Costco, is actually an attempt to steal financial information or gain access to computers, officials said.
    Bay City News Service, The Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • From an early age, she was involved in the wider world, dealing with professionals and bureaucrats, seeing and negotiating the practicalities of power, while also shaping her technique, forming her ideas, and expanding her realm of experience.
    Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 1 Feb. 2025
  • Politicians, bureaucrats and geo-political analysis are nowhere to be seen in a screenplay that’s pro-military without getting too jingoistic.
    Richard Kuipers, Variety, 31 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • The robbery occurred about 7:15 p.m. when a man with a pistol took about $60 from Richard Caldwell, 22, the 7-Eleven clerk.
    The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, arkansasonline.com, 5 Feb. 2025
  • The Southwest desk clerk didn’t share my enthusiasm.
    David Hudnall, Kansas City Star, 31 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • The mix of renovating office spaces, coupled with newer spaces to live and have fun are helping businesses bring workers back to the office.
    Desiree Mathurin, Charlotte Observer, 3 Feb. 2025
  • Financial and professional support for workers, as well as privacy practices and climate efforts, are among the issues where corporate disclosures are analyzed to inform the rankings.
    CNBC.com staff, CNBC, 3 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • This would make these benefits less valuable to employees when taxes are factored in.
    Cheryl Winokur Munk, CNBC, 2 Feb. 2025
  • George knows how to get under their skin, from breaking and eating into the food inventory to keeping the employees from working on the computer.
    David Faris, Newsweek, 2 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • Competent functionaries mostly belonged to other political camps.
    Kaya Genc, Foreign Affairs, 12 Aug. 2019
  • The group’s materiel and manpower have been distributed across various security agencies, where they are managed by functionaries who are more loyal and less ambitious.
    Julian G. Waller, Foreign Affairs, 14 Aug. 2024
Noun
  • That maneuver went at the heart of what was regarded as a sacrosanct tenet in American government: that civil servants remain outside partisan politics and can’t be fired without due process.
    Anna Maria Barry-Jester, ProPublica, 9 Feb. 2025
  • But civil servants are not waiting around for that to happen.
    Simon Shuster, TIME, 7 Feb. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Mandarin.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mandarin. Accessed 16 Feb. 2025.

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