{"id":9777,"date":"2022-10-07T17:54:15","date_gmt":"2022-10-07T17:54:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/?p=9777"},"modified":"2022-10-07T17:56:06","modified_gmt":"2022-10-07T17:56:06","slug":"red-tape-meaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/red-tape-meaning\/","title":{"rendered":"Red Tape \u2013 Meaning, Origin and Usage"},"content":{"rendered":"

Would you like to refer to something that is going to take a lot of effort, going to get tied up in bureaucracy or mean a considerable amount of tedious paperwork? The phrase 'red tape'<\/strong> comes up often in popular culture and could be used to mean all three things. This post unpacks the meaning, use and origin of the phrase.<\/p>\n

Meaning<\/h2>\n

The phrase 'red tape' <\/strong>is a sentence that is used to imply that something is going to take a lot of effort, that it might take a lot of bureaucracy \u2013 or that it's just going to take a lot of paperwork.<\/u><\/p>\n

The implication is that the issue which is being discussed 'is going to get tied up in red tape' <\/strong>as the longer version of the saying sometimes says.<\/p>\n

The phrase 'red tape' <\/strong>can be used as part of a sentence, but can also be used on its own (or as a hashtag on social media) that implies the meaning.<\/p>\n

The phrase 'red tape'<\/strong> is figurative, and refers to an unnecessary amount of effort or paperwork that it is going to take to resolve something.<\/u><\/p>\n

Someone would not use the expression in the plural form, the use 'red tape' <\/strong>will suffice even if the speaker means several issues at once.<\/p>\n

Sometimes the expression 'red tape' <\/strong>can be used with humorous implications if this is shown through the rest of what has been said.<\/u><\/p>\n

The phrase 'red tape' <\/strong>should not be confused with the phrase 'red carpet' <\/strong>which can imply that something is luxurious or flashy.<\/u><\/p>\n

Example Usage<\/h2>\n

\u201cOh, goddamnit. My uncle got hit by a bus this morning, and now I'm going to be late for work. That's going to be a whole lot of red tape for everyone in the family.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you wanted to keep track of your music collection in the eighties, you had to write everything down on a list yourself. It was a whole lot of red tape to keep track of your tapes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe used to be able to steal onions at the dollar store all the time. These days you'll get spotted on security cameras, and that's a whole lot of red tape to deal with.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you believe in a lot of red tape, you should go work for government.\u201d<\/p>\n

Origin<\/h2>\n

According to most online language resources, the phrase 'red tape' is said to come from an ancient filing process that was used around the 1700s: instead of modern library catalogs, important books were bound in red tape \u2013 and anyone who moved through the library would see.red tape everywhere.<\/p>\n

When something is said to be 'tied up in red tape' it usually means that something is going to take a lot of paperwork.<\/p>\n

Even though most people who use the expression do not remember the origin of the phrase, the saying 'red tape' still has the same meaning when it is used today.<\/p>\n

Other online language resources dispute the common claim, and instead attribute it to English writers in the more modern 1800s.<\/p>\n

Phrases Similar to Red Tape<\/h2>\n
    \n
  • Bureaucracy<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Phrases Opposite to Red Tape<\/h2>\n
      \n
    • Easy peasy lemon squeezy<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      What is the Correct Saying?<\/h2>\n
        \n
      • [tied up in] red tape<\/li>\n
      • [it's all] red tape<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        Ways People May Say Red Tape Incorrectly<\/h2>\n

        There are several ways to use the phrase 'red tape' in the wrong way, or misunderstand the meaning of the phrase.<\/p>\n

        Someone would not say 'red tapes' to use the phrase, as there is no need for the plural form and the expression would lose its validity.<\/p>\n

        Acceptable Ways to Phrase Red Tape<\/h2>\n

        The correct way to use the phrase 'red tape' is to use the phrase to imply that something is going to take a lot of work, administrative effort, paperwork or\u00a0 bureaucracy to achieve.<\/p>\n

        Someone can use the phrase to imply that something is 'wrapped up' or 'tied up' in red tape.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Would you like to refer to something that is going to take a lot of effort, going to get tied up in bureaucracy or mean a considerable amount of tedious paperwork? The phrase 'red tape' comes up often in popular culture and could be used to mean all three things. This post unpacks the meaning, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9777"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9777"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9777\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9779,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9777\/revisions\/9779"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9777"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9777"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9777"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}