Word of the Day
: April 8, 2025apparatchik
playWhat It Means
Apparatchik is used disapprovingly to refer to a blindly devoted official, follower, or member of an organization, such as a corporation or political party.
// This generation of graduates wants more out of life than to become establishment apparatchiks.
apparatchik in Context
"Played by What We Do in the Shadows' Matt Berry, Shazbor is a faithful party apparatchik and staunch defender of his country's traditions ..." — Damon Wise, Deadline, 25 Jan. 2025
Did You Know?
The apparat in apparatchik (a term English speakers borrowed from Russian) essentially means "party machine," with machine referring to a highly organized political group under the leadership of a boss or small group of individuals: apparatchik originally referred to someone functioning as a cog in the system of the Communist Party. The term is not a flattering one, and its negative connotations reflect the perception of some Communists as obedient drones in the great Party machine. In current use, however, a person doesn't have to be a member of the Communist Party to be called an apparatchik; they just have to be someone who mindlessly follows orders in an organization or bureaucracy.
Test Your Vocabulary with M-W Quizzes
Quiz
What 7-letter word refers to any of a series of earth-orbiting satellites launched by the Soviet Union beginning in 1957, and means "traveling companion" in Russian?
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