rigmarole

Meanings

1. 1nounsingularinformaldisapproving

   A long, tiresome process with many pointless steps that you must go through to get something done.

   Grammar: Usually with a: the whole rigmarole.

   Patterns

   • go through the rigmarole of
   • the whole rigmarole

   Renewing my passport was a real rigmarole.

   I hate the whole rigmarole of airport security.

   They made us go through a rigmarole just to return a pen.

2. 2nouncountableold-fashioned

   A rambling, confused piece of talk or a complicated story with little sense.

   Grammar: Old-fashioned.

   Patterns

   • a rigmarole of something

   He told a long rigmarole about his day.

   The speech was a rigmarole of excuses.

   Her explanation was a rigmarole nobody understood.

3. 3nounsingularhumorous

   A fussy ritual or routine involving needless fuss.

   Grammar: Often with morning or bedtime.

   Patterns

   • bedtime rigmarole

   The children's bedtime rigmarole took an hour.

   Morning rigmarole included three alarms.

   His coffee rigmarole annoyed the staff.

Word forms

Common combinations

the whole rigmarole

I skipped the whole rigmarole and called them.

bureaucratic rigmarole

Bureaucratic rigmarole delayed the permit.

go through the rigmarole

We had to go through the rigmarole again.

tedious rigmarole

Tedious rigmarole awaited at the bank.

legal rigmarole

Legal rigmarole slowed the sale.

Synonyms and how they differ

palaver

Palaver is a fuss or long talk, more about noise than steps.

red tape

Red tape means official bureaucracy specifically.

hassle

Hassle is general annoyance, less about a long procedure.

procedure

Procedure is neutral, while rigmarole is critical.

Opposites

Word family

rigamarole noun

a variant spelling

ragman roll noun

the old origin of the word

Commonly confused: rigmarole or rigor?

Practice

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