繁文缛节 (fán wén rù jié) — red tape; excessive, pointless formalities
Definition
A formal/literary idiom meaning pointless, over-elaborate formalities — 'red tape.' More bookish than plain 手续 ('procedures'), which simply names the steps themselves.
idiom
red tapeexcessivepointless formalities
Examples
- 繁文缛节，。Shēn qǐng qiān zhèng de shǒu xù zhēn shì fán wén rù jié, ràng rén tóu téng.The visa application paperwork is such red tape — it gives people headaches.
- 繁文缛节，。Zhè jiā gōng sī jiǎn huà le fán wén rù jié, gōng zuò xiào lǜ tí gāo le bù shǎo.This company cut out the excessive formalities, and work efficiency improved a lot.
- 繁文缛节，。Wǒ men bù xū yào zhè xiē fán wén rù jié, zhí jiē tán zhèng shì ba.We don't need all this red tape — let's get straight to business.
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