Bureau
name, noun ·Moderate ·High school level
Definitions
- 1 An administrative unit of government; office.
"Ashley Johnson is an energy, trade and economics expert at the National Bureau of Asian Research, based in the United States."
- 2 furniture with drawers for keeping clothes wordnet
- 3 An organization or office for collecting or providing information or news.
"a news bureau; a travel bureau; a service bureau; an employment bureau; the Citizens Advice Bureau"
- 4 an administrative unit of government wordnet
- 5 An office (room where clerical or professional duties are performed).
"There was an eerie silence in the dorm [... in] the factory. [...] The lamp glowed in his bureau, warm and reassuring and, through the window, I could see his papers strewn across the desk. [...] I called his name again. A movement from his bureau. [...] I banged on his door until it opened a crack[. ...] He pushed me out onto the staircase. "Get out," he screamed. The door to his bureau slammed in my face."
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- 6 A desk, usually with a cover and compartments that are located above the level of the writing surface rather than underneath, and often used for storing papers. British
- 7 A chest of drawers for clothes. Northeastern, US
- 1 A surname from French.
Example
More examples"The weather bureau says it will rain tonight."
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from French bureau, earlier "coarse cloth (as desk cover), baize", from Old French burel (“woolen cloth”), diminutive of *bure (compare Middle French bure (“coarse woolen cloth”), French bourre (“hair, fluff”)), from Late Latin burra (“wool, fluff, shaggy cloth, coarse fabric”); akin to Ancient Greek βερβέριον (berbérion, “shabby garment”). Doublet of burel and borrel, taken from Old French.
Related phrases
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.