Bureaucratese

noun, slang

noun, slang ·4 syllables ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A style of language, used by bureaucrats, that involves jargon or euphemism to the detriment of broader understanding. derogatory, informal, uncountable

    "Help you fill out the application for food stamps and other government programs, break down the discouraging bureaucratese."

  2. 2
    Wordy, ostentatious talk or writing that resembles bureaucratic writing. derogatory, informal, uncountable

    "The company president's annual statement was complete bureaucratese: it was utterly content-free."

Synonyms

All synonyms
bureaucratspeaklegaleselegaleseofficialeseofficialese

Example

More examples

"Help you fill out the application for food stamps and other government programs, break down the discouraging bureaucratese."

Etymology

From bureaucrat + -ese.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.