dilemmanoun [ C ]
uk/daɪˈlem.ə//dɪˈlem.ə/us/daɪˈlem.ə//dɪˈlem.ə/B2 a situation in which a difficult choice has to be made between two different things you could do:
The president is clearly in a dilemma about/over how to tackle the crisis.
She faces the dilemma of disobeying her father or losing the man she loves.
a moral/ethical dilemma
More examples
- We are faced with an agonizing dilemma and it seems there is no correct choice.
- Now he has been offered the other job, which puts him in a bit of a dilemma.
- Should he aim for approval from his parliamentary colleagues or follow the wishes of the wider public? It was a dilemma.
- I found myself in a dilemma and really didn't know what to do for the best.
- To my father, the situation was simple and he couldn't understand my dilemma.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Difficult situations and unpleasant experiences
- a (heavy) cross to bear idiom
- a cloud on the horizon idiom
- a fate worse than death idiom
- a hard/tough row to hoe idiom
- a narrow squeak idiom
- barrel
- bind
- crunch
- curse
- fate
- feeding frenzy
- going
- have a bumpy ride idiom
- have sb over a barrel idiom
- schtuck
- shtook
- stalemate
- standoff
- sticky wicket
- vortex
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