as in dilemma
a difficult, puzzling, or embarrassing situation from which there is no easy escape
shoreline residents are finding themselves helplessly falling down a rabbit hole in their Sisyphean efforts to halt beach erosion
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Recent Examples of rabbit hole
But the process will also create opportunities to make the material more widely available online for consumers who want to go down the rabbit hole of watching every available segment with their favorite stars.
—
Los Angeles Times, 23 Mar. 2026
Alex Hogan’s latest video (an excellent romp into the new semaglutide pills) sent me tumbling down a rabbit hole that ended with Monty Norman, the guy who composed the James Bond theme song.
—O. Rose Broderick, STAT, 6 Mar. 2026
Finding out involves a rabbit hole of campaign finance documents.
—Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Feb. 2026
What ensued was a journey down the psychic rabbit hole that would bring him from plant neurobiologists to stream-of-conscious novelists, AI laboratories, and even a Zen Roshi’s cave.
—Nick Hilden, Rolling Stone, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for rabbit hole
Los Angeles Times, 23 Mar. 2026
Alex Hogan’s latest video (an excellent romp into the new semaglutide pills) sent me tumbling down a rabbit hole that ended with Monty Norman, the guy who composed the James Bond theme song.
—O. Rose Broderick, STAT, 6 Mar. 2026
Finding out involves a rabbit hole of campaign finance documents.
—Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Feb. 2026
What ensued was a journey down the psychic rabbit hole that would bring him from plant neurobiologists to stream-of-conscious novelists, AI laboratories, and even a Zen Roshi’s cave.
—Nick Hilden, Rolling Stone, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for rabbit hole
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rabbit hole
Noun
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Such local sites focus on a small group of people who happened to live in a certain place at a certain time—and who, for that fleeting moment, came to stand in for the dilemmas of the nation at large.—
Beverly Gage,
The Atlantic,
5 Apr. 2026
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For the present, we’re saddled with the unwieldy dilemma of there being eight major Democratic candidates and just two Republicans.—
George Skelton,
Mercury News,
3 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Baby boomers have been getting plenty of blame for this predicament in recent years, but some defenders say it’s not entirely warranted.—
Michael Smolens,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
3 Apr. 2026
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Companies like TikTok and Snap are in the same predicament.—
Jennifer Elias,Jonathan Vanian,
CNBC,
3 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Serve over rice with yogurt and achaar (or whatever pickle-y thing is around).—
Nina Moskowitz,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
5 Apr. 2026
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Over the decades, children have given up everything from sunflower seeds to pickles.—
Elliot Mann,
Twin Cities,
4 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Cut a piece of PVC piping slightly longer than the pot’s height, then drill holes 2 inches (5 centimeters) apart along its sides.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
7 Apr. 2026
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Residents in West Philadelphia are fed up with a massive hole in the middle of their street.—
Kerri Corrado,
CBS News,
7 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Faced with the request to make a Martini that was simultaneously very cold and bracingly strong, legendary bartender Salvatore Calabrese was in a bind.—
Jeremy Repanich,
Robb Report,
4 Apr. 2026
-
Which puts the Knicks in a bind.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
3 Apr. 2026
Noun
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All seagrasses descend from a group of flowering plants that includes the arums and water plantains, many of which grow in swamps or along streams.—
David George Haskell,
Big Think,
27 Mar. 2026
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During a livestream of an airboat tour of a Florida swamp, Peters and a friend repeatedly fired handguns at an alligator.—
Scottie Andrew,
CNN Money,
27 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Fouquet’s makes the perfect place to post up for a weekend getaway (or longer) in a cozy and iconic corner of New York’s downtown.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 Apr. 2026
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The decision to end the joint-venture comes one year after Lip Bu Tan took over as CEO of the struggling chipmaker and the move raised hopes on Wall Street that the company's business could be turning a corner, with shares rising nearly 9% in regular trading.—
Alexei Oreskovic,
Fortune,
2 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rabbit hole.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rabbit%20hole. Accessed 7 Apr. 2026.
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