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

Two is the ads, and three is the auto play, and kind of the algorithm and the rabbit hole you can go down.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 21, 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

Other enthusiasts are also not put off, and with the 82-year-old as my guide, I attempted to discover just how much further down the longevity rabbit hole a person could go.

From Slate • Mar. 30, 2026

Or am I overthinking this and going too far down the rabbit hole?

From MarketWatch • Mar. 24, 2026

But instead of a rabbit hole, he discovered only a septic tank.

From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova