apparatchik

[ah-puh-rah-chik, uh-puh-raht-chyik]

noun

plural

apparatchiks ,

plural

apparatchiki .

1. a member of an apparat, especially in a Communist country.

apparatchik

/ ˌæpəˈrɑːtʃɪk /

noun

1. a member of a Communist apparat

2. an official or bureaucrat in any organization

Word History and Origins

Origin of apparatchik¹

1940–45; < Russian apparátchik, equivalent to apparát apparat + -chik agent suffix

Word History and Origins

Origin of apparatchik¹

C20 from Russian, from apparat apparatus, instrument + -ckik , suffix denoting agent

Example Sentences

“Who’s going to volunteer to be the next civil servant if they think their supervisor is an apparatchik?”

From Salon

The Federal Society apparatchiks who controlled advancement didn’t know her.

From Salon

So far, Trump's apparatchiks have not blatantly defied the courts, but they're working them around the edges.

From Salon

Are they academics, scholars and scientists, or do they also include those of less elevated standing — technocrats, policy wonks, apparatchiks, pundits, journalists — who command a sizable public audience?

From Salon

“More and more Hezbollah is looking like a purely Iran-aligned apparatchik, as opposed to a locally ingrained Lebanese party,” Daou said.

From Los Angeles Times