Definition
nounGovernment by bureaus or their administrators or officers.
nounA system of administration based upon organisation into bureaus, division of labour, a hierarchy of authority, etc., designed to dispose of a large body of work in a routine manner.
Sentence Examples
The bureaucracy is expanding to meet the needs of an expanding bureaucracy.
The bureaucracy is expanding to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.
Bureaucracy is a giant mechanism operated by pygmies.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *péh₂wr̥
Proto-Hellenic *pāwər
Ancient Greek πῦρ (pûr)
Proto-Indo-European *-rós
Proto-Hellenic *-rós
Ancient Greek -ρός (-rós)
Ancient Greek πῠρρός (pŭrrhós)bor.
Latin burrus
Latin burra
Old French *bure
Proto-Indo-European *-lós
Proto-Indo-European *-elós
Proto-Italic *-elos
Latin -lus
Latin -ellus
Old French -el
Old French burel
French bureau
Proto-Indo-European *kret-
Ancient Greek κρᾰ́τος (krắtos)
Proto-Indo-European *-h₂
Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂
Proto-Indo-European *-i-eh₂
Proto-Hellenic *-íā
Ancient Greek -ῐ́ᾱ (-ĭ́ā)
Ancient Greek -κρᾰτῐ́ᾱ (-krătĭ́ā)lbor.
French -cratie
French bureaucratie
English bureaucracy
From bureau + -cracy, from French bureaucratie, coined by Jean Claude Marie Vincent de Gournay from bureau (“office”) + -cratie (“rule of”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"However, when Britain left the European Union, ferries started to ply a direct sea link from Ireland, to save hauliers from custom's bureaucracy of driving via Britain."
— 2021 December 29, Philip Haigh, “Rail's role in unifying Great Britain and Northern Ireland”, in RAIL, number 947, page 25:
"Each of the most provocative selections is facing criticism that they lack the expertise and experience to run the vast, specialized bureaucracies that would be under their control."
— 2024 November 18, Stephen Collinson, “Trump doubles down on provocative Cabinet picks as their fates hang in the balance”, in CNN, archived from the original on 28 Mar 2025:
""If we can capture anything from this awful situation, it is that ability to trust people to do certain things for themselves and to look out for each other, and to give them the tools to do their job as well as they can without having to go through endless bureaucracy to achieve it, which very often just delays and dilutes and doesn't add much value."
— 2020 May 20, Andrew Haines talks to Stefanie Foster, “Repurpose rail for the 2020s”, in Rail, page 35:
"“If you have rule of the bureaucrat — if the bureaucracy is in charge, then what meaning does democracy actually have?” Musk said during his 30-minute appearance with Trump, where he rebuffed critics who said he’s the one undermining democratic institutions."
— 2025 February 14, Marshall Cohen, “The almighty Musk: How the world’s richest man became Washington’s most powerful bureaucrat”, in CNN, archived from the original on 21 Feb 2025: