pencil pusher

American  

noun

Informal.

1. a person, as a clerk or bookkeeper, whose work involves a considerable amount of writing, record-keeping, etc.

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Etymology

Origin of pencil pusher

An Americanism dating back to 1880–85

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pencil pusher

Dad is in perpetual mourning for a son who died in the first Gulf War and considers John, in comparison, a milquetoasty pencil pusher.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

Villanelle, an elegant assassin excelled in her profession by being invisible; Eve's invisibility as a pencil pusher at MI5 made it easy for her peers to ignore her.

From Salon ● Feb. 27, 2022

“I was the pencil pusher, doing a lot of research. My state of the art tools were a slide rule and a Frieden computer. We were taking the theoretical and making it real.”

From The Verge ● Aug. 9, 2018

I was a pencil pusher in the regular Army back in the 80’s and I knew many women who could serve in many ways given the chance.

From New York Times ● May 27, 2017

"Hey, you pencil pusher," he called, "did you see the big boss?"

From The Story of General Pershing by Everett T.

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