Thesaurus:dilemma

Thesaurus

dilemma

English

Noun

Sense: a choice between two undesirable alternatives

Synonyms

• dilemma
• lose-lose
• no-win situation
• Catch-22
• Morton's fork

Hypernyms

• option    [⇒ thesaurus]

Hyponyms

• double bind

Various

• conundrum
• spanner
• trilemma
• tetralemma
• polylemma

Adverbial and adjectival phrases

• between a rock and a hard place
• between Scylla and Charybdis
• between the devil and the deep blue sea
• between the hammer and the anvil (chiefly UK)
• damned if one does and damned if one doesn't
• doomed if you do, doomed if you don't
• have the wolf by the ear
• in a bind
• in a cleft stick
• on the horns of a dilemma
• out of the frying pan, into the fire

See also

• Thesaurus:difficult situation

Further reading

• “475. uncertainty” in Roget's Thesaurus, T. Y. Crowell Co., 1911.
• “476. reasoning” in Roget's Thesaurus, T. Y. Crowell Co., 1911.
• “609. choice” in Roget's Thesaurus, T. Y. Crowell Co., 1911.
• “704. difficulty” in Roget's Thesaurus, T. Y. Crowell Co., 1911.
• “dilemma” in Moby Thesaurus II, Grady Ward, 1996.