bureaucracy

noun

bu·​reau·​cra·​cy byu̇-ˈrä-krə-sē 

byə-, 

byər-ˈä-

plural bureaucracies

1

a

: a body of nonelected government officials

… the role played by the unelected bureaucracy in implementing policy …

—Joshua D. Clinton et al.

b

: an administrative policymaking group

Designing a robust health bureaucracy, … and boosting patient satisfaction …

—Jean Dennison

2

: government characterized by specialization of functions, adherence to fixed rules, and a hierarchy of authority

… French bureaucracy, with the different parts of the system not joined up and working together.

—Anne Pouzargues

3

: a system of administration marked by officialism, red tape, and proliferation

But the patchwork of remedies has been complicated by state laws, politics and bureaucracy.

—David Nakamura

Did you know?

The Roots of Bureaucracy

Bureaucracy was borrowed from the French bureaucratie, which itself was formed by combining bureau (“desk”) and -cratie (a suffix denoting a kind of government). The English word can refer to an entire body of unelected government officials or to the problematic system (often filled with red tape) that may result from administration by bureaucrats. From its earliest appearances, bureaucracy has carried a distinctly negative connotation. An 1815 London Times article, for example, declares: “. . . it is in this bureaucracy, Gentlemen, that you will find the invisible and mischievous power which thwarts the most noble views, and prevents or weakens the effect of all the salutary reforms which France is incessantly calling for.”

Examples of bureaucracy in a Sentence

As Europe slipped deeper into the war, the uranium panel twiddled its thumbs. It was so mired in bureaucracy that by the spring of 1940, it had managed to approve only the $6,000 in research funds earmarked for Fermi and Szilard, so they could purchase uranium and graphite for their fission experiments. —Jennet Conant, Tuxedo Park, 2002

In recent books and articles a small but outspoken chorus of former CIA case officers has portrayed the once proudly swashbuckling agency as a timid, politically correct bureaucracy, overly concerned with being held to account by the press and Capitol Hill. —Evan Thomas, Newsweek, 29 Apr. 2002

Proving that even lumbering federal bureaucracies can move quickly when they have to, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) last week took advantage of Congress' extended holiday break to introduce its long-awaited—and, perhaps, long-dreaded—ergonomic standards. —Editor & Publisher, 27 Nov. 1999

She was fed up with all the red tape and bureaucracy.

Both candidates pledge to simplify the state's bloated bureaucracy.

Recent Examples on the Web

One item that needs less funding is government bureaucracy and low-value administrative spending. —Mark Dee may 3, Idaho Statesman, 3 May 2026

Martel turns that eerie impassivity into an asset by treating the drone’s perspective as a kind of God’s-eye view of a conflict in which one side is trying to win by way of the inexorable, self-reinforcing power of bureaucracy and paperwork. —Alison Willmore, Vulture, 1 May 2026

Sokoloff points to his experience managing large-scale projects as key to navigating the city’s budget and bureaucracy. —Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026

Although, in the case of my narrator, the stakes are much lower and the bureaucracy he’s caught up in actually works out in his favor. —Cressida Leyshon, New Yorker, 26 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French bureaucratie, from bureau bureau + -cratie -cracy

First Known Use

1815, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for bureaucracy

• aristocracy
• meritocracy
• autocracy
• democracy
• hypocrisy
• plutocracy
• theocracy

Kids Definition

bureaucracy

noun

bu·​reau·​cra·​cy byu̇-ˈräk-rə-sē 

plural bureaucracies

1

: a body of government officials

2

: a system of managing an organization (as a government or business) by strictly following a fixed routine or procedure that often results in delay