bureaucrat
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bureaucrat
A civil servant or employee in an administration who follows regulations excessively strictly. The term is often used disparagingly for a person perceived as pedantic and inflexible.
Wegen eines fehlenden Stempels schickte der Bürokrat im Amt den Antragsteller wieder weg.
Because of a missing stamp, the bureaucrat at the office sent the applicant away again.
Careful: 'Bürokrat' (bureaucrat) is almost always an insult or is at least used in a strongly disparaging way. It does not describe a neutral job title, but criticizes a person as inflexible and excessively fixated on rules.
Er gilt als typischer Bürokrat, der für kein Problem eine einfache Lösung findet.
He is considered a typical bureaucrat who cannot find a simple solution to any problem.
The word is made up of 'Büro' (office) and the ending '-krat', which comes from Greek and means 'rule' or 'power'. A 'Bürokrat' (bureaucrat) is therefore literally a 'ruler of the office', which emphasizes the negative association of rigid power.
Man fühlt sich der Willkür von einem Bürokraten ausgeliefert.
You feel at the mercy of a bureaucrat's arbitrariness.
This word belongs to a word family related to administration. Important related terms are the noun 'die Bürokratie' (bureaucracy) and the adjective 'bürokratisch' (bureaucratic).
Die übermäßige Bürokratie im Land lähmt viele Unternehmen.
The excessive bureaucracy in the country is paralyzing many companies.
civil servant
Both der Beamte and der Bürokrat can work in an administration. Beamter refers to the public-law status and is initially neutral. Bürokrat, by contrast, describes someone who follows rules excessively strictly and usually has a disparaging tone. Use Beamter for the status and Bürokrat for the criticized inflexibility.
Der Bürokrat verlangte für den Antrag trotz der einfachen Situation noch ein weiteres Formular.
Despite the straightforward situation, the bureaucrat demanded yet another form for the application.
Der Beamte prüfte den Antrag sorgfältig und erklärte die nächsten Schritte.
The civil servant carefully reviewed the application and explained the next steps.
