| Bureaucracy 1. (n.) A system of government by means of departments or bureaus often associated with excessive costs and procedures, each under the control of a chief, in contradiction to a system in which the officers of government have an associated authority and responsibility; also, government conducted on this system. 2. (n.) Government officials, collectively. Thesaurus Entries administration, authorities, beadledom, beat, beaten path, bumbledom, bureaucratism, chinoiserie, daily grind, directorate, government, grind, groove, hierarchy, higher echelons, higher-ups, jog trot, management, ministry, official jargon, officialdom, officialism, prelacy, red tape, red-tapeism, red-tapery, round, routine, ruling class, ruling classes, run, rut, squirrel cage, the Establishment, the administration, the authorities, the ingroup, the interests, the people upstairs, the power elite, the power structure, the top, them, they, top brass, track, treadmill, well-worn groove |