noun
- A member of a political party or government bureaucracy, especially one who is loyal to the organization rather than to principles or individuals.
Usage: Originally used to describe Soviet Communist Party officials; now applied more broadly to any rigid bureaucrat.; Often carries a negative connotation, implying blind obedience and lack of independent thought.
Examples
- The apparatchik followed party directives without question.
- Critics dismissed him as a mere apparatchik more interested in climbing the ladder than serving the public.
- The government was run by apparatchiks who had spent decades in the system.
- She refused to become another apparatchik in the bloated bureaucracy.
- The apparatchiks in the ministry resisted any reform that might threaten their positions.
- Unlike the idealistic young activists, the old apparatchiks cared only about maintaining power.