bureaucratic

adjective

bu·​reau·​crat·​ic ˌbyu̇r-ə-ˈkra-tik 

ˌbyər-

: of, relating to, or having the characteristics of a bureaucracy or a bureaucrat

bureaucratic government

a bureaucratic organization

bureaucratic procedures

bureaucratically

ˌbyu̇r-ə-ˈkra-ti-k(ə-)lē 

ˌbyər-

adverb

Examples of bureaucratic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In his 23-year career in emergency management, Don Campbell said the FEMA reimbursement system is the most bureaucratic process he’s ever encountered. —Briah Lumpkins, Charlotte Observer, 9 Sep. 2025

By operating outside traditional healthcare frameworks, such as HIPAA, BetterTherapy aims to make mental health resources more accessible and less bureaucratic. —Becca Bratcher, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025

Reforming the electric system, however, is precisely where the executive branch should embrace the impulse to break through the bureaucratic hurdles holding back reform. —Brian Deese, Foreign Affairs, 9 Sep. 2025

The great Albert Brooks film Defending Your Life, from 1991, imagines a bureaucratic heaven that prepares the recently departed for their next phase of existence. —Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French bureaucratique, from bureaucrate bureaucrat or bureaucratie bureaucracy + -ique -ic entry 1

First Known Use

1800, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing bureaucratic

• anti-bureaucratic

Rhymes for bureaucratic

• adiabatic
• aristocratic
• asymptomatic
• axiomatic
• diagrammatic
• diaphragmatic
• electrostatic
• endolymphatic
• epigrammatic
• homeostatic
• idiomatic
• magnetostatic

Kids Definition

bureaucratic

adjective

bu·​reau·​crat·​ic ˌbyu̇r-ə-ˈkrat-ik 

: of, relating to, or having the characteristics of a bureaucracy or bureaucrat

bureaucratically

-ˈkrat-i-k(ə-)lē 

adverb