bureaucrat

[byoor-uh-krat]

noun

1. an official of a bureaucracy.

2. an official who works by fixed routine without exercising intelligent judgment.

bureaucrat

/ ˈbjʊərəˌkræt, bjʊəˈrɒkrəˌtɪzəm /

noun

1. an official in a bureaucracy

2. an official who adheres to bureaucracy, esp rigidly

bureaucrat

1. Someone who works in or controls a bureaucracy. The term is often used negatively to describe a petty, narrow-minded person. (See also conformity and organization man (see also organization man).)

Other Word Forms

• bureaucratism noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of bureaucrat¹

From the French word bureaucrate, dating back to 1835–45. See bureau, -crat

Example Sentences

They offered incentives to bureaucrats to retire immediately.

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Granted, gravy tastes less sweet when used to rail against bureaucrats.

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“I completely failed the test,” he said of his experience as a bureaucrat.

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Mr. Howard calls him “a literary bureaucrat,” which sounds even less glamorous.

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Innovators, investors, and users, not bureaucrats, are deciding which AI technologies and products are created and which succeed.

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Related Words

• administrator 
• civil servant 
• functionary 
• politician 
• public servant