English

Bundle of US pension documents from 1906 bound in red tape

Noun

red tape ‎(uncountable)

1. The binding tape once used for holding important documents together.
   • 1893, Walter Besant, The Ivory Gate, chapter II:

     At twilight in the summer there is never anybody to fear—man, woman, or cat—in the chambers and at that hour the mice come out. They do not eat parchment or foolscap or red tape, but they eat the luncheon crumbs.

2. (idiomatic) Time-consuming regulations or bureaucratic procedures.

   All the red tape and paperwork that goes on there prevents any progress.‎

Synonyms

• administrivia
• administrativia
• paperwork

Translations

Anagrams

• adepter
• predate
• retaped
• tapered

See also

• red tape gone mad (idiomatic)