plural lobbyists
: one who conducts activities aimed at influencing or swaying public officials and especially members of a legislative body on legislation : a person engaged in lobbying public officials
The new rule says that if you were a registered lobbyist in the past two years, you can't work for the administration on any issue you touched. After you leave government, you can't lobby the administration at all. Jacob Weisberg
Because so many lobbyists have past experience on Capitol Hill, they usually have personal ties both to members of congress and to their key staffers, who vet and prioritize the earmark requests. Ken Silverstein

Examples of lobbyist 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.
In addition to Wang, two others — Michael Bai, a lobbyist who formerly worked at City Hall, and Koreatown developer Pak — came on the Vegas trip. Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Times, 12 June 2025 The next day the city manager asked the lobbyist, Mat Forrest of Ballard Partners, to elaborate. Anthony Man, Sun Sentinel, 7 June 2025 The Chiefs and Royals are planning to decide this month where to secure their future homes and haven’t committed to either state — even if Missouri approves the plan, their lobbyists told lawmakers. Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 6 June 2025 Campaign finance regulators dinged a top Beacon Hill budget writer for taking in excess donations from lobbyists and filing late expense reports with the state, according to a filing from last week. Chris Van Buskirk, Boston Herald, 3 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for lobbyist

Word History

First Known Use

1842, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of lobbyist was in 1842

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Cite this Entry

“Lobbyist.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lobbyist. Accessed 15 Jun. 2025.

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