English vocabulary · C1
Bureaucracy
/bjʊˈrɑːkrəsi/ · n.
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Bureaucracy is an administrative system run by officials following rules and procedures. The word can also mean excessive paperwork and procedures that cause delays.
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Example sentences
- Bureaucracy held up our permit.
- Small firms drown in bureaucracy.
Word origin and roots
- bureau — office (from French)
- cracy — rule (from Greek)
Synonyms and nuances
- OFFICIALDOM — officials as a group (The world of officials)
- RED TAPE — rules that cause delay (Rules that block progress)
- PAPERWORK — forms and documents (Forms and written tasks)
Words with the same root
cracy — rule
- democracy — rule by the people
- aristocracy — rule by a privileged group
- autocracy — rule by one person
Lesson notes
Bureaucracy is an administrative system run by officials following rules and procedures. The word can also mean excessive paperwork and procedures that cause delays.
Related: officialdom, red tape, paperwork. Use bureaucracy when rules block work.
Bureaucracy held up our permit. Small firms drown in bureaucracy.
Bureau- means office, from French. Cruh-see- means rule, from Greek. Office rule blocks work; that's bureaucracy.