rat race: Meaning and Definition of

rat' race"

Pronunciation: [key]
— Informal. Informal.
  1. any exhausting, unremitting, and usually competitive activity or routine, esp. a pressured urban working life spent trying to get ahead with little time left for leisure, contemplation, etc.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.