Synonyms of official

official 1 of 2

noun

ə-ˈfi-shəl 

as in officer

a person who holds a public office

some of our best public officials do their jobs quietly and are never in the news

Synonyms & Similar Words

• officer
• administrator
• director
• manager
• executive
• functionary
• commissioner
• officeholder
• public servant
• chair
• chairman
• superintendent
• supervisor
• bureaucrat
• regulator
• head
• minion
• underling
• flunkey
• flunky
• flunkie
• co-official

official

2 of 2

adjective

as in authorized

ordered or allowed by those in authority

the official languages for those Olympic Games were French and English

Synonyms & Similar Words

• authorized
• legitimate
• promoted
• legal
• lawful
• sanctioned
• suggested
• authoritative
• supported
• approved
• endorsed
• licensed
• regulation
• permissible
• certified
• legit
• canonical
• indorsed
• semiofficial
• licit
• encouraged
• abetted
• ex officio

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• unofficial
• unauthorized
• illegal
• unlawful
• nonofficial
• wrongful
• illicit
• unsanctioned
• illegitimate
• impermissible
• lawless
• unlicensed
• unapproved
• verboten

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of official

Noun

Israeli strikes overnight killed at least 19 people, mostly women and children, health officials said. —Wafaa Shurafa, Los Angeles Times, 30 Mar. 2025

That same year Timothy Ziemer, the top White House official in the National Security Council for leading U.S. response against a pandemic, departed. —Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes.com, 30 Mar. 2025

Adjective

For instance, in November 2022, Summers suggested that inflation might have been as high as 18%, far above the official 4.1% figure. —Bob Haber, Forbes, 19 Mar. 2025

Hot on the heels of his Fashion Week fete, Kors was clinking glasses this time around due to his brand making its official debut on Amazon earlier that day. —Freya Drohan, Vogue, 19 Mar. 2025