noun
acrobatic barrel-rolling with the feet
A circus or acrobatic trick where a person lies on their back and rolls a barrel or similar object using their feet. This is the original literal meaning.
サーカスで、ピエロがたらい回しを披露した。
At the circus, the clown performed barrel-rolling with his feet.
noun, noun or participle which takes 'suru', transitive verb
passing something around in a fixed order
Used for circulating an object, document, or task among a set group of people in a predetermined sequence. Often implies a mechanical, impersonal process.
書類が部署内でたらい回しにされて、なかなか決裁が下りない。
The document is being passed around within the department, and approval is slow to come.
回覧板をたらい回しする。
Circulate the neighborhood notice board.
noun, noun or participle which takes 'suru', transitive verb
buck-passing; shifting a problem to someone else
Strongly negative nuance: evading responsibility by sending a person or issue from one office or person to another without resolution. Common in bureaucratic or complaint contexts.
苦情を言っても、あちこちにたらい回しにされるだけで、誰も責任を取ろうとしない。
Even when I complain, I just get passed around from one place to another, and no one takes responsibility.
患者をたらい回しにする病院が問題になっている。
Hospitals that shuffle patients around without proper treatment have become a problem.