policymaker

noun

pol·​i·​cy·​mak·​er ˈpä-lə-sē-ˌmā-kər How to pronounce policymaker (audio)
variants or less commonly policy maker or policy-maker
plural policymakers also policy makers or policy-makers
: someone who is responsible for or involved in establishing policy
economic policymakers
He had been a policymaker under four Republican and Democratic Presidents and had spent years on Capitol Hill fencing with congressional committees and lobbying for votes.—William Greider

Examples of policymaker in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
That outcome may seem acceptable to American policymakers who have become accustomed to managing conflicts and maintaining relationships with bad actors. — Marc Lynch, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026 The rise in bond yields creates complications for policymakers as governments are faced with rising debt. — John Towfighi, CNN Money, 18 Aug. 2026 NurPhoto via Getty Images Last month, dozens of heads of state, defense ministers, policymakers, and defense experts traveled to Ankara for the 2026 NATO Summit. — Mark Temnycky, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026 Although climate scientists warned in the nineteen-eighties that extreme heat posed a growing danger, policymakers in Europe didn’t come to grips with it until August, 2003, when a heat wave killed more than seventy thousand people. — Eric Klinenberg, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for policymaker

Word History

First Known Use

1868, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of policymaker was in 1868

Rhymes for policymaker

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Browse Nearby Words

policy loan
policymaker
policymaking
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Cite this Entry

“Policymaker.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/policymaker. Accessed 19 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on policymaker

Nglish: Translation of policymaker for Spanish Speakers

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