| 词汇 | red tape |
| 词源 | red tape. In the early 1900s, when the term arose, lawyers and government officials often tied their papers together with red ribbons. Because excessive formality and time-consuming, rigid adherence to rules and regulations often characterized lawyers and governmental agencies, red tape became a syno- nym for these failings. The words were popularized mainly by Thomas Carlyle, who castigated government officials for red tapism. |
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