- chiefly Brit a writing desk with pigeonholes, drawers, etc, against which the writing surface can be closed when not in use
- US a chest of drawers
- an office or agency, esp one providing services for the public
- a government department
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
bu•reau /ˈbyʊroʊ/USA pronunciation
n. [countable], pl. bu•reaus, bu•reaux
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- /ˈbyʊroʊz/.USA pronunciation
- Furniturea chest of drawers:The keys are right on top of the bureau.
- Governmenta division of a government department:the weather bureau.
- an office that collects and distributes information;
agency;
branch:The personnel bureau handles that. - British TermsChiefly Brit. a writing desk with drawers for papers.
bu•reau
(byŏŏr′ō),USA pronunciation n., pl. bu•reaus, bu•reaux
-
(byŏŏr′ōz).USA pronunciation
- Furniturea chest of drawers, often with a mirror at the top.
- Governmenta division of a government department or an independent administrative unit.
- an office for collecting or distributing news or information, coordinating work, or performing specified services;
agency:a travel bureau; a news bureau. - British Terms[Chiefly Brit.]a desk or writing table with drawers for papers.
- *būra, variant of Late Latin burra wool, fluff; compare bourrée) + -el noun, nominal suffix
- French: desk, office, origin, originally a kind of cloth (used to cover desks, etc.), Anglo-French, Old French burel, equivalent. to bur- (probably
- 1710–20
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
bureau /ˈbjʊərəʊ/ n ( pl -reaus, -reaux /-rəʊz/)
'bureau' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
bureau de change
- burlap
- CAB
- CIA
- Criminal Records Bureau
- eurocheque
- FBI
- kilogram
- pigeonhole
- Politburo
- travel agency
- abs
- AFBF
- agency
- American Farm Bureau Federation
- BAE
- BATF
- BB
- BBB
- Better Business Bureau
- Bia
- BLM
- BLS
- BPI
- bu.
- bur
- bureaucracy
- bureaucrat
- Bureau of Customs
- Bureau of Indian Affairs
- Bureau of Internal Revenue
- Bureau of Land Management
- Bureau of Mines
- Bureau of the Budget
- Bureau of the Census
- burgeon
- census tract
- chiffonier
- client
- Cominform
- credit bureau
- department
- desk
- divan
- division
- dresser
- driver's license
- Farm Bureau
- Federal Bureau of Investigation
- fire marshal