bureaucratese

English

Etymology

bureaucrat +‎ -ese.

Noun

bureaucratese (uncountable)

1. (informal, derogatory) A style of language, used by bureaucrats, that involves jargon or euphemism to the detriment of broader understanding.
   • 2019, Colson Whitehead, The Nickel Boys, Fleet, page 186:

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

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

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

Synonyms

• officialese
• legalese

Related terms

• bureaucracy
• bureaucrat
• bureaucratic
• bureaucratically

Translations

pejorative term for language typically used by bureaucrats

• Bulgarian: канцеларски стил m (kancelarski stil)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 官腔 (zh) (guānqiāng)

• Finnish: (viranomaisten) kapulakieli
• French: langue de bois (fr) f
• German: (languages in general) Bürokratensprache f, Behördensprache (de) f, Verwaltungsjargon m; (for German more often) Amtsdeutsch (de) n, Behördendeutsch (de) n, Beamtendeutsch (de) n; (the same terms can also be formed with other languages e.g. Amtsenglisch n (“English bureaucratese”))
• Italian: burocratese (it)
• Russian: канцеляри́т (ru) m (kanceljarít)
• Swedish: kanslisvenska c

pejorative term for language resembling that used by bureaucrats

• Finnish: kapulakieli (fi)
• German: Behördensprache (de) f, Kanzleistil (de); (for German more often) Beamtendeutsch (de) n, Amtsdeutsch (de) n, Papierdeutsch (de) n

See also

• legalese
• obfuscation