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bureaucratese

American  
[byoor-uh-kra-teez, -tees, byoo-rok-ruh-] / ˌbjʊər ə kræˈtiz, -ˈtis, bjʊˌrɒk rə- /

noun

  1. a style of language, used especially by bureaucrats, that is full of circumlocutions, euphemisms, buzzwords, abstractions, etc.


Etymology

Origin of bureaucratese

bureaucrat + -ese

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

In translation, that's bureaucratese for widespread trauma to come.

From Salon Jun. 6, 2023

That’s bureaucratese for “we don’t feel too strongly about this.”

From Washington Post Apr. 19, 2022

She walks out some hours later with a traumatized expression on her face, after flailing in a sea of incomprehensible bureaucratese, unable to extract a single coherent thought from her notes.

From New York Times Feb. 28, 2020

Viewers in the late Soviet era had become accustomed to a heavy lexicon of bureaucratese and boosterism that verged on the absurd.

From The New Yorker Dec. 9, 2019

The bland bureaucratese of an April 2004 report by the General Accounting Office did not hide harsh conclusions: Overseas missions were draining the guard of its troops, particularly in expert specialties.

From Slate Sep. 7, 2016

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