the rat race
noun
: the unpleasant life of people who have jobs that require them to work very hard in order to compete with others for money, power, status, etc.
She is quitting the rat race to spend time with her family.
Examples of the rat race in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In bar basements, shopping malls, and performance halls, young comics talked subtly and sardonically about the lack of job prospects, the rat race of education, and the pressures to marry and bear children.
—
Chang Che, The New Yorker, 26 Mar. 2024
The towns in the San Bernardino Mountains—including Big Bear, Arrowhead, and the surrounding areas—have always been iconic mountain escapes, especially for Angelenos looking to retreat from the rat race.
—Krista Simmons, Sunset Magazine, 18 Dec. 2023
The 10-episode series, developed for the streamer by Onyx Collective, is based on Zakiya Dalila Harris’s best-selling 2021 novel of the same name and follows Nella Rogers (Sinclair Daniel), a put-upon editorial assistant, as the rat race leads her down unexpected paths.
—Leigh-Ann Jackson, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2023
With a long way to go until voters head to the polls, candidates have ample time to continue raising money and keep trying to pull ahead in the rat race.
—Justin Klawans, The Week, 4 Aug. 2023
But a whole swath of them are opting out of the rat race.
—Theodora Yu, Washington Post, 25 July 2023
Big Bear has always been an iconic mountain escape, especially for Angelenos looking to retreat from the rat race.
—Krista Simmons, Sunset Magazine, 30 Jan. 2023
The job-changing trend has revived a debate about the futility of the rat race.
—Zixu Wang, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2023
The Moon is coasting into your sleepy 12th house, giving you cosmic permission to check out from the rat race and tend to your own needs away from the world.
—Tarot Astrologers, Chicago Tribune, 9 Mar. 2023
Chang Che, The New Yorker, 26 Mar. 2024
The towns in the San Bernardino Mountains—including Big Bear, Arrowhead, and the surrounding areas—have always been iconic mountain escapes, especially for Angelenos looking to retreat from the rat race.
—Krista Simmons, Sunset Magazine, 18 Dec. 2023
The 10-episode series, developed for the streamer by Onyx Collective, is based on Zakiya Dalila Harris’s best-selling 2021 novel of the same name and follows Nella Rogers (Sinclair Daniel), a put-upon editorial assistant, as the rat race leads her down unexpected paths.
—Leigh-Ann Jackson, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2023
With a long way to go until voters head to the polls, candidates have ample time to continue raising money and keep trying to pull ahead in the rat race.
—Justin Klawans, The Week, 4 Aug. 2023
But a whole swath of them are opting out of the rat race.
—Theodora Yu, Washington Post, 25 July 2023
Big Bear has always been an iconic mountain escape, especially for Angelenos looking to retreat from the rat race.
—Krista Simmons, Sunset Magazine, 30 Jan. 2023
The job-changing trend has revived a debate about the futility of the rat race.
—Zixu Wang, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2023
The Moon is coasting into your sleepy 12th house, giving you cosmic permission to check out from the rat race and tend to your own needs away from the world.
—Tarot Astrologers, Chicago Tribune, 9 Mar. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'the rat race.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near the rat race
Cite this Entry
“The rat race.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20rat%20race. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share