paarse krokodil

Dutch

Etymology

Literally, "purple crocodile". From a 2005 television commercial by Dutch insurance company OHRA, in which a swimming bath employee refuses to return a lost inflatable purple crocodile to its owners unless they comply with several pointless lost and found regulations, even though their object is sitting right next to him.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˌpaːr.sə kroː.koːˈdɪl/
  • Hyphenation: paar‧se kro‧ko‧dil

Noun

paarse krokodil m or f (plural paarse krokodillen)

  1. (Netherlands, idiomatic) inordinate bureaucracy, red-tapism
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