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.
The change removes some administrative hoops, said Frank Bisignano, CEO at the IRS.
From MarketWatch • Jul. 8, 2026
Both companies said there could be operational and administrative benefits from combining the businesses.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 6, 2026
The measure says revenues cannot be spent on state bureaucracy or administrative costs.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 6, 2026
Harry Litman, a former US attorney and law professor, said in a Substack post that the ruling could have a "corrosive" impact on the administrative state.
From Barron's • Jul. 3, 2026
Along the spine of the Andes the empire set up a string of a dozen administrative centers that were like smaller versions of the capital.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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.
