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Functionary: meaning, definitions and examples

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functionary

 

[ ˈfʌŋkʃəˌnɛri ]

Noun
Context #1 | Noun

government official

A functionary is a person who has a position in a large organization, especially a government, and whose job involves dealing with official documents.

Synonyms

administrator, bureaucrat, official

Examples of usage

  • He was a faceless functionary in the Ministry of Information.
  • The functionaries at the embassy processed the visa applications efficiently.
  • She worked her way up from a lowly functionary to a high-ranking official.

Translations

Translations of the word "functionary" in other languages:

🇵🇹 funcionário

🇮🇳 कर्मचारी

🇩🇪 Beamter

🇮🇩 pegawai

🇺🇦 посадовець

🇵🇱 urzędnik

🇯🇵 役人 (やくにん)

🇫🇷 fonctionnaire

🇪🇸 funcionario

🇹🇷 memur

🇰🇷 공무원 (gongmuwon)

🇸🇦 موظف

🇨🇿 úředník

🇸🇰 úradník

🇨🇳 官员 (guānyuán)

🇸🇮 uradnik

🇮🇸 embættismaður

🇰🇿 қызметкер

🇬🇪 თანამდებობის პირი

🇦🇿 vəzifəli şəxs

🇲🇽 funcionario

Etymology

The word 'functionary' originated in the late 18th century from the Latin word 'functionarius', meaning 'pertaining to performance of duties'. It was first used in English to describe a person performing official or administrative duties within an organization. Over time, the term has come to be associated particularly with government officials and bureaucrats.

See also: dysfunction, dysfunctional, functional, functionality, functionally, functionaries, functioning, functions, malfunction, malfunctions, misfunction, multifunctional, multifunctionality, nonfunctional, perfunctory.

Word Frequency Rank

Positioned at #22,147, this word is part of extensive vocabulary. It's relatively rare in general usage but may be important in specific fields or formal writing.