bureaucratic
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- antibureaucratic adjective
- bureaucratically adverb
- nonbureaucratic adjective
- nonbureaucratically adverb
- semibureaucratic adjective
- semibureaucratically adverb
- unbureaucratic adjective
- unbureaucratically adverb
Etymology
Origin of bureaucratic
From the French word bureaucratique, dating back to 1830–40. See bureaucrat, -ic
Explanation
Anything bureaucratic has to do with the business of running an organization — usually not in a very efficient manner. If there are bureaucrats or a bureaucracy involved, go ahead and call it bureaucratic. This adjective is used in a negative sense to describe a person or organization more concerned with following procedures than being guided by common sense. Bureaucratic things usually involve loads of paperwork and nonsensical rules, otherwise known as "red tape" — a connection that originated in the 17th century when official documents were bound together with actual red tape.
Vocabulary lists containing bureaucratic
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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.
The status quo was saddling administrators with long hours without extra pay amid increasing bureaucratic compliance demands as well as heightened pressure to raise test scores.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026
We’re talking about an enormous bureaucratic organization with 2,000 years of weird and troubled history, whose massive internal contradictions and bitter factional disputes are only partly visible to outsiders.
From Salon • Apr. 5, 2026
In an earlier post, he blamed "bureaucratic problems" for holding up his plans to modernise the armed forces' equipment and their aircraft.
From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026
Lam has implemented dramatic changes in nearly two years at the helm, slashing bureaucratic red tape and pushing major infrastructure investments as he aims to boost economic growth.
From Barron's • Mar. 14, 2026
Round face and hairless, smooth features; like a clerk in a bureaucratic office.
From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
