Meaning & use
Kafkaesque
Characterized by a nightmarish, illogical complexity, especially involving confusing bureaucracy, as in the works of Franz Kafka.
See it in a sentence
Renewing the visa turned into a Kafkaesque ordeal of endless forms and offices.
The trial had a Kafkaesque quality, with charges that were never fully explained.
A note on using this word
Kafkaesque is always capitalized, since it derives from the author Franz Kafka, and describes oppressive, confusing situations, not merely strange ones.
Words with a similar meaning
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