song and dance

as in rigamarole
language marked by abstractions, jargon, euphemisms, and circumlocutions instead of simply denying our request, the mayor's representative gave us a song and dance about legal issues and municipal liability

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of song and dance Same old story, same old song and dance for the Wolves. Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 21 Jan. 2025 Every song and dance on Dancing With the Stars season 33 VelJohnson is beloved for playing patriarch and police officer, Carl Winslow, on Family Matters for nine seasons from 1989 to 1998. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 27 Nov. 2024 Yet, this lovable kids' series continues to teach positive messages through song and dance to this day. Lynnette Nicholas, Parents, 15 Jan. 2025 Though the story takes place in the fantastical world of Oz, Scott says the most successful musicals always have their moments of song and dance grounded in a sense of reality. Ryan Fleming, Deadline, 18 Dec. 2024 See All Example Sentences for song and dance
Recent Examples of Synonyms for song and dance
Noun
  • This could be reflected in Putin's rhetoric moving forward.
    David Faris, Newsweek, 27 Feb. 2025
  • The portfolio is better positioned to handle volatility if rhetoric escalates from here.
    Jeff Marks, CNBC, 27 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • Is there a company that prides itself on an absence of rigmarole?
    Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 22 July 2024
  • Last season’s nail-biting seven-game battle was famously known as the I-80 series because both teams opted for the approximately 90-minute (depending on traffic) bus ride rather than the rigmarole of a short flight.
    Joe Rubin, Sacramento Bee, 16 Apr. 2024
Noun
  • As always, Yellowjackets is full of mind-bending detours, supernatural gobbledygook, and foliage-laden costumes.
    Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 18 Feb. 2025
  • Apologies to the Lois Lane stans out there, but Adams is mostly on hand in these movies to deliver stern gobbledygook (something about isotopes?) and stare at Henry Cavill’s cheekbones.
    Matthew Jacobs, Vulture, 6 Dec. 2024
Noun
  • The child first dialed 911 and began saying gibberish to the dispatcher before hanging up and dialing again.
    Landon Mion, Fox News, 1 Mar. 2025
  • Fried memes and hysterical gibberish suffocate the internet nowadays.
    Kieran Press-Reynolds, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Song and dance.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/song%20and%20dance. Accessed 10 Mar. 2025.

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