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Looking embarrassed, volunteers given exercise in bureaucracy
Answer for the clue "Looking embarrassed, volunteers given exercise in bureaucracy ", 8 letters:
red tape
Alternative clues for the word red tape
Word definitions for red tape in dictionaries
Wikipedia
Word definitions in Wikipedia
Red tape is an idiom that refers to excessive regulation or rigid conformity to formal rules that is considered redundant or bureaucratic and hinders or prevents action or decision-making. It is usually applied to governments , corporations , and other ...
WordNet
Word definitions in WordNet
n. needlessly time-consuming procedure [syn: bureaucratic procedure ]
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Word definitions in Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
noun EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES ▪ U.S. companies fear the red tape will scare off customers. EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS ▪ All the bureaucratic disclosures and red tape in the country can not offset either. ▪ But red tape is not the only or even the main problem. ...
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
Word definitions in Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
"excessive bureaucratic rigmarole," 1736, in reference to the red tape formerly used in Great Britain (and the American colonies) for binding up legal and other official documents, mentioned from 1690s.
Wiktionary
Word definitions in Wiktionary
n. 1 The binding tape once used for holding important documents together. 2 (lb en idiomatic) Time-consuming regulations or bureaucratic procedures.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Word definitions in The Collaborative International Dictionary
Tape \Tape\, n. [AS. t[ae]ppe a fillet. Cf. Tapestry , Tippet .] A narrow fillet or band of cotton or linen; a narrow woven fabric used for strings and the like; as, curtains tied with tape. A tapeline; also, a metallic ribbon so marked as to serve as a ...
Usage examples of red tape.
Plod are so busy working their paper or playing Twister with rolls of red tape that wankers like Mick have free rein to bash the vulnerable and frighten the horses.
He was deep inside himself I guessed that he was looking at the red tape and rule books that had allowed so many criminals to make their living from the suffering of others and get away with it.