Lockstep
WordNet
noun
(1) A manner of marching in file in which each person's leg moves with and behind the corresponding leg of the person ahead
"The prisoner's ankles were so chained together that they could only march in lockstep"
(2) A standard procedure that is followed mindlessly
"The union's support had been in lockstep for years"
WiktionaryText
Noun
- A step whereby the toe of one man is brought very close to the heel of the man in front.
- Close connection, unison, rigid synchronization.
- 2007, Tim Weiner, Legacy of Ashes, Penguin 2008, p. xv:
- The CIA's analysts learned to march in lockstep, conforming to conventional wisdom.
- 2007, Tim Weiner, Legacy of Ashes, Penguin 2008, p. xv:
- An inflexible, rigid or stifling pattern.