Showing results for "rabbit hole"

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Slang dictionary results for rabbit hole.

rabbit hole

American  

[rab-it hohl] / ˈræb ɪt ˌhoʊl /

noun

1. a tunnel made in the ground by a rabbit; a rabbit burrow.

2. Informal. a strange, disorienting, or frustrating situation or experience, typically one that is difficult to navigate: I have been down the rabbit hole of building a new home.

   I had a history of depression and occasionally fell down dark, deep rabbit holes from which only medication and therapy could pull me out.

   I have been down the rabbit hole of building a new home.

3. Informal. a time-consuming distraction of one's attention as happens when clicking through online links, following social media posts, or pursuing information.

   After diving down an internet rabbit hole and poring over treatments, risks, and so on, she felt even more panicked.

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Etymology

Origin of rabbit hole

First recorded in 1660–70; rabbit hole def. 2 was first recorded in 1935–40, from Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Example Sentences

“You heard about it all the time at parties. My best friend was like, ‘That story is rabbit hole upon rabbit hole upon rabbit hole — no one knows what really happened.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 3, 2026

Despite her efforts to curtail his behavior at home, the very technology bought by schools to help democratize learning had become the medium through which he fell deeper down his rabbit hole.

From Slate • May 12, 2026

ChatGPT did warn me, but when I pressed it went down a rabbit hole of how to trade them.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 5, 2026

Choudhury’s account was my first stop falling down the dinosaur community rabbit hole, and one of the most edifying.

From Salon • Apr. 12, 2026

I went down a bit of a rabbit hole here; the property has been tied up in a legal dispute since late 2012, and then an additional case was opened in 2018 about adverse possession.

From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy