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Pounding Sand Down a Rathole
An expression used to signify a menial or fruitless task; frequently to be preformed by someone not of sound mind or full capacity.
Giving money directly to a hopeless alcoholic to help him improve his situation is like pounding sand down a rathole.
Pounding Sand Down a Rathole by modtrtr March 6, 2009
Related Words
ratholer
A person who intermittently raises a matter they know will lead to personal anxiety for a friend or acquaintenance; a person who wilfully wants to take a person down a rathole of discomfort.
rathole
A topic of conversation that has diverted wildly from the original conversational thread and is generally viewed by all (but the one leading the topic) as being without resolution, or at the very least is uninteresting to others in the group. Ratholes usually open up when related but tangential topics are discussed which are explored in much more detail than is required for the relational reference to the original thread.
I was trying to keep things on topic, but you've opened up a big rathole with all this talk of comic book plot twists.
rathole by Stark Raven Mad August 4, 2007
Wikipedia Rathole
The act of losing between 45-120 minutes while performing click-throughs from the initial Wikipedia page you were interested in.... often leading you to knowledge that has no relationship what-so-ever to your original search.
Man, I was lost 2 hours and missed a meeting because I went down a Wikipedia Rathole. However, I do now know that Richie Sambora is was born in Woodbridge, NJ.
NOTE: Original search was snow fall amounts in the NE.
NOTE: Original search was snow fall amounts in the NE.
Wikipedia Rathole by spaceman2004 October 29, 2009
rathole file
This is where documents procrastinate after apathetic organization has rodented (is that a word yet? I mean ferreted and squirreled are verbs, but there are plenty of rodents that succinctly define the behavior) them away to an innocuous corner of of an administrative employee's office.
How did you find the Jonathon estate contract? That wasn't in his folder.
I just dug it out of the rathole file. Looks like the last signature on it is five years old.
I just dug it out of the rathole file. Looks like the last signature on it is five years old.
rathole file by enkephalin07 August 19, 2023
More from Urban Dictionary
Bunhead
A girl who does ballet and only talks about ballet. Her schedule is filled with dance classes which does not allow her to do any other activity.
trucker's tan
A sunburn or suntan focused on the left arm. It is caused by the left side of the body being the only half that gets exposed to sunlight while driving. Presumably, it would be located on the right side of the body in countries where they drive on the left side of the road.
trucker's tan by population361 May 30, 2006
Word of the Day on October 5, 2026
kidulting
Every time I walk into the toy aisle, I catch myself kidulting over the latest action figures and LEGO sets!
kidulting by Emotional Cruiser October 12, 2025
Word of the Day on October 4, 2026
Boffin
British slang for a scientist or technical expert, esp . when the speaker is not certain of the expert’s specific field of study. Not necessarily derogatory, but typically used by persons without a technical background. In the US, the equivalent would be “egghead”, “squint”, or “geek.”
Origin of the word is unknown. Started sometime in World War 2. Given the typical evolution of British slang, could easily have started because what these experts did was confusing or “baffling” to the common person.
Origin of the word is unknown. Started sometime in World War 2. Given the typical evolution of British slang, could easily have started because what these experts did was confusing or “baffling” to the common person.
Pee Calculus
When you have to pee in a movie but don’t want to miss anything, and must do the following mental equation: will the amount I have to pee cause enough discomfort to diminish my attention capacity for the remainder of the movie to an extent which is greater than the amount of the movie I would miss by making a mad dash to the restroom.
Pee Calculus by anorlondo October 1, 2026
Word of the Day on October 2, 2026