rathole

American  

[rat-hohl] / ˈrætˌhoʊl /

noun

1. a hole made by a rat, as into a room, barn, etc..

   The first chore in the old building is to plug up the ratholes.

2. the burrow or shelter of a rat.

3. any small and uncomfortable room, office, apartment, etc., especially one that is dirty or disordered.

   He lives in a rathole near the docks.

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idioms

1. down the rathole, for a worthless purpose or purposes.

   seeing your inheritance disappear down the rathole.

Etymology

Origin of rathole

First recorded in 1805–15; rat + hole

Example Sentences

The states would be motivated to determine the legitimacy of the payments before the money disappears down the fraud rathole.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 4, 2026

When I try to describe the civic and cultural value of architecture, I sometimes contrast entering Grand Central, the city’s great gateway, with the experience of arriving at the rathole that is Penn Station.

From New York Times • Sep. 24, 2020

The house was a real—I won't curse on the podcast, but, you know, a rathole, let's say.

From The New Yorker • Sep. 19, 2018

The actual Nixon was ever the wounded animal, so lacking in social and personal confidence that it led him down the rathole of a scandal that shattered the public’s trust in American politics.

From Slate • May 18, 2018

“Where have you led us, dwarf? My horse does not leave my side. Climb into this rathole, the rest of you. I shall guard Islimach myself.”

From "The Black Cauldron" by Lloyd Alexander

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