quandary

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈkwɑndri/ UK /ˈkwɒndəri/ See IPA manual

noun

Meanings

1

noun
a state of uncertainty or perplexity over a difficult choice

She was in a quandary about which job offer to accept.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a state of uncertainty or... dilemma predicament plight fix impasse perplexity puzzle

Opposites

certainty solution

Etymology

Of uncertain origin, attested from the late 16th century; perhaps a fanciful coinage suggestive of Latin quando ('when') or quandoque, but the etymology is genuinely obscure.

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

# quandary

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** ˈkwɑndri
**IPA (UK):** ˈkwɒndəri

## Meanings
1. a state of uncertainty or perplexity over a difficult choice

## Examples
- She was in a quandary about which job offer to accept.

## Synonyms
- dilemma
- predicament
- plight
- fix
- impasse
- perplexity
- puzzle

## Antonyms
- certainty
- solution

## Etymology
Of uncertain origin, attested from the late 16th century; perhaps a fanciful coinage suggestive of Latin quando ('when') or quandoque, but the etymology is genuinely obscure.

## AI Etymology
Quandary is of uncertain origin, attested from the late 16th century; perhaps a fanciful coinage suggestive of Latin quando ('when') or quandoque, but the etymology is genuinely obscure. The form preserves a compact historical development in which the older wording and the present sense remain closely connected. As a noun, it denotes "a state of uncertainty or perplexity over a difficult choice", keeping the historical idea close to its dictionary sense.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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quandary

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