bu ‧ reauc ‧ ra ‧ cy /bjʊəˈrɒkrəsi $ bjʊˈrɑː-/ BrE AmE noun ( plural bureaucracies )
[ Date: 1800-1900 ; Language: French ; Origin: bureaucracie , from bureau ( ⇨ ↑ bureau ) + -cracie '-cracy' ]
1 . [uncountable] a complicated official system that is annoying or confusing because it has a lot of rules, processes etc ⇨ red tape :
the reduction of unnecessary bureaucracy
2 . [uncountable and countable] the officials who are employed rather than elected to do the work of a government, business etc