quicksand

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   loose, water-saturated sand that appears firm but gives way under weight and can trap people or objects

   The guide tested the riverbank with a pole before crossing the quicksand.

2. 2
   noun

   a difficult or dangerous situation that gradually traps someone and becomes harder to escape

   Each new loan pulled the company deeper into financial quicksand.

From Middle English quyksande and Old English cwecesand, a compound of quick in its older sense "alive or moving" + sand. The name describes sand that shifts or seems to move beneath weight; the figurative sense extends that entangling instability to dangerous situations.

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