administrative
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of administrative
From the Latin word administrātīvus, dating back to 1725–35. See administrate, -ive
Explanation
If your job is administrative, you're pretty much limited to paperwork, check-writing, or maybe hiring and firing. Administrative means having to do with overseeing the "office-y" things. An artist doesn't have time for administrative details; they're too busy creating. A successful artist will hire a manager to handle the administrative aspects of his career, such as contacting galleries, setting up shows, and making sure they get paid for their work. People who handle administrative duties are often called bureaucrats, which is typically not a nice name to be called. Sometimes they're called "administrators." Teachers are there to teach; principals have to handle the administrative duties of running a school.
Vocabulary lists containing administrative
Obama's 2013 State of the Union
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Sincerely Sicily
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State and Local Governments, Sections 1–4
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
And he has been resolved to pursue every legal and administrative avenue, vowing to “exhaust every internal remedy available” until, in his view, justice is served.
From Slate • May 28, 2026
The US Treasury's move came after a Friday order from an appeals court issued an administrative stay on an earlier ruling while the court considers the merits of the case.
From Barron's • May 27, 2026
Day to day, they will delegate more administrative tasks to AI, much like 26-year-old Elizabeth Awad currently does in her role as a senior product manager.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 26, 2026
He had been in command of an operation to clear barriers set up by anti-government protesters aimed at slowing the flow of goods into the administrative capital, La Paz, and nearby El Alto.
From BBC • May 24, 2026
At this hour, only a few members of the burial society remained in the building to take care of administrative duties and funeral arrangements.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
