rigamarole

British  

/ ˈrɪɡəməˌrəʊl /

noun

1. a variant of rigmarole

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Explanation

Rigamarole is a messy, complicated process that takes longer than it should. The rigamarole involved in getting your driver's license might make it tempting to just keep riding your bike. The word rigamarole, which is also spelled rigmarole, is a great way to describe bureaucratic procedures like filling out tax forms or registering for college classes, or lengthy tasks like helping a small child put on boots, mittens, a coat, and a hat before leaving the house on a snowy day. You can also use it to mean "a long, rambling story," as in "He went into the whole rigamarole of how he'd pulled himself up by his bootstraps."

Example Sentences

As for patients who are truly resistant to the rigamarole of treatments, and comfortable playing host to a virus, “I tell those patients to go for it,” says Radusky.

From Slate • Oct. 6, 2022

So, the next time you're craving caramelized onions but aren't feeling up to the whole stand and stir rigamarole, grab your sheet pan and give onion-caramelized onions a try.

From Salon • Feb. 5, 2022

Is it worth my time to make the phone call and wade through all of the menus and rigamarole?

From Slate • Jan. 5, 2022

It costs a fortune, and by the time you get through the whole rigamarole of flying, you could have already reached your destination by car.

From Golf Digest • Jan. 17, 2018

Ol' man Judson was a curious affair, had his own way o' doin' every blessed thing, an' whenever he hired a man he always went through the same rigamarole.

From Happy Hawkins by Wason, Robert Alexander