red tape
Preserved but no longer current.
Official formality, or rigid ad- herence to rules and regulations, carried to excessive lengths; so called because lawyers and government officials tie their papers to- gether with red tape. Charles Dickens is said to have introduced the expression; but it was the scorn continually poured upon this evil of officialdom by Carlyle that brought it into popular use.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “red tape” mean?
Official formality, or rigid ad- herence to rules and regulations, carried to excessive lengths; so called because lawyers and government officials tie their papers to- gether with red tape. Charles Dickens is said to have introduced the expression; but it was the scorn continually poured upon this evil of officialdom by Carlyle that brought it into popular use.
Is “red tape” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.