Red Tape Definition
noun
Official forms and routines.
Webster's New World
The collection or sequence of forms and procedures required to gain bureaucratic approval for something, especially when oppressively complex and time-consuming.
American Heritage
Too great attention to regulations and routine, resulting in delay in getting business done.
Webster's New World
Synonyms:
- bureaucratic procedure
- officialdom
- inflexible routine
- paperwork
- officialism
- holdup
- roadblock
- inaction
- wait
Origin of Red Tape
Thought to allude to the former practice of binding government documents in red-coloured tape
From Wiktionary
From its former use in tying British official documents
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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