Meaning of squirrel cage | Babel Free

Definitions

1. A circular cage for a squirrel or other small animal, which rotates vertically as the animal runs at the bottom.
2. A tedious, repetitive, unfulfilling activity or situation, especially one in which no progress is achieved.
   broadly, figuratively
3. Any other device, such as a fan or rotor, that resembles a squirrel cage in form.

Examples

“The poor stuggle for riches, success, power; but those who achieve them die out. Life is, then a sort of squirrel cage or treadmill.”

“So maybe I wouldn't even call Kevin. . . . Or I could just see him socially. . . . Or I could . . . . Or, or, or. . . . I was still running around in this squirrel cage when the big gray poisonous cloud that usually covers New York materialized just off the right wing.”

“A blower, in the shape of a drum fan (also called a "squirrel cage"), pulls the warm humid air from the room across the coils.”

CEFR level