apparat

American  

[ap-uh-rat, ah-puh-raht] / ˌæp əˈræt, ˌɑ pəˈrɑt /

noun

1. an organization or existing power structure, especially a political one.

   a position of leadership within the party apparat; The chess apparat is not eager to change tournament rules.

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apparat British  

/ ˌæpəˈrɑːt /

noun

1. the Communist Party organization in the former Soviet Union and other states

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Etymology

Origin of apparat

1940–45; < Russian apparát originally, scientific apparatus < German < Latin apparātus. See apparatus

Example Sentences

The security apparat would weary of the task.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 18, 2025

Bertolt Brecht is typical of those who believe that "Kafka described with wonderful imaginative power the future concentration camps, the future instability of the law, the future absolutism of the state apparat."

From Time Magazine Archive

The CDU was further rocked last week by the old apparat.

From Time Magazine Archive

It is clear now to thoughtful members of the literary apparat that a critic who praises an Iron Curtain writer does so at considerable risk to his reputation as a subtle fellow.

From Time Magazine Archive

As this was the first known encounter between an actual no-kidding cyberpunk and a chief executive of America's largest and best-financed electronic espionage apparat, there was naturally a bit of eyebrow-raising on both sides.

From The Hacker Crackdown, law and disorder on the electronic frontier by Sterling, Bruce