Dilemma - Definitions from Dictionary.com

6 results for: Dilemma

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

di·lem·ma

Audio Help [di-lem-uh] Pronunciation Key

–noun

1.	a situation requiring a choice between equally undesirable alternatives.

2.	any difficult or perplexing situation or problem.

3.	Logic. a form of syllogism in which the major premise is formed of two or more hypothetical propositions and the minor premise is a disjunctive proposition, as “If A, then B; if C then D. Either A or C. Therefore, either B or D.”

[Origin: 1515–25; < LL < Gk dílémma, equiv. to di- di-¹ + lêmma an assumption, premise, deriv. of lambánein to take

]

—Related forms

dil·em·mat·ic

Audio Help [dil-uh-mat-ik] Pronunciation Key, dil·em·mat·i·cal, di·lem·mic, adjective

dil·em·mat·i·cal·ly, adverb

—Synonyms 1. See predicament. 2. question, difficulty.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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Dilemma

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

di·lem·ma Audio Help (dĭ-lěm'ə) Pronunciation Key
n.

A situation that requires a choice between options that are or seem equally unfavorable or mutually exclusive.
Usage Problem A problem that seems to defy a satisfactory solution.
Logic An argument that presents two alternatives, each of which has the same consequence.

[Late Latin, from Greek dilēmma, ambiguous proposition : di-, two; see di-¹ + lēmma, proposition; see lemma¹.]

dil'em·mat'ic (dĭl'ə-māt'ĭk) adj.

Usage Note: A dilemma is a situation in which a choice must be made between alternative courses of action or argument. Although citational evidence attests to widespread use of the term meaning simply "problem" or "predicament" and involving no issue of choice, 58 percent of the Usage Panel in our 1999 survey rejected the sentence Historically, race has been the great dilemma of democracy. · It is sometimes claimed that because the di- in dilemma comes from a Greek prefix meaning "two," the word should be used only when exactly two choices are involved. Nevertheless, 64 percent of the Usage Panel in our 1988 survey accepted its use for choices among three or more options.

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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
dilemma

1523, from L.L. dilemma, from Gk. dilemma "double proposition," a technical term in rhetoric, from di- "two" + lemma "premise, anything taken," from base *lab-. It should be used only of situations where someone is forced to choose between two alternatives, both unfavorable to him. But even logicians disagree on whether certain situations are dilemmas or mere syllogisms.

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

dilemma
noun
state of uncertainty or perplexity especially as requiring a choice between equally unfavorable options

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
dilemma [diˈlemə, ˈdailemə] noun

a position or situation giving two choices, neither pleasant
Example: His dilemma was whether to leave the party early so as to get a lift in his friend's car, or to stay and walk eight kilometres home.

Arabic:	وَرْطَه، مَأْزِق
Chinese (Simplified):	困境，进退两难
Chinese (Traditional):	困境，進退兩難
Czech:	dilema
Danish:	dilemma
Dutch:	dilemma
Estonian:	dilemma
Finnish:	pulma
French:	dilemme
German:	das Dilemma
Greek:	δίλημμα
Hungarian:	dilemma
Icelandic:	ógöngur, valþröng
Indonesian:	dilema
Italian:	dilemma

Japanese:	ジレンマ
Korean:	딜레마, 진퇴 양난
Latvian:	dilemma
Lithuanian:	dilema
Norwegian:	dilemma, vanskelig valg, knipe
Polish:	dylemat
Portuguese (Brazil):	dilema
Portuguese (Portugal):	dilema
Romanian:	dilemă
Russian:	дилемма
Slovak:	dilema
Slovenian:	zadrega
Spanish:	dilema
Swedish:	dilemma
Turkish:	ikilem, çıkmaz

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Dilemma

Di*lem"ma\, n. [L. dilemma, Gr. ?; di- = di`s- twice + ? to take. See Lemma.]

1. (Logic) An argument which presents an antagonist with two or more alternatives, but is equally conclusive against him, whichever alternative he chooses.

Note: The following are instances of the dilemma. A young rhetorician applied to an old sophist to be taught the art of pleading, and bargained for a certain reward to be paid when he should gain a cause. The master sued for his reward, and the scholar endeavored to ?lude his claim by a dilemma. "If I gain my cause, I shall withhold your pay, because the judge's award will be against you; if I lose it, I may withhold it, because I shall not yet have gained a cause." "On the contrary," says the master, "if you gain your cause, you must pay me, because you are to pay me when you gain a cause; if you lose it, you must pay me, because the judge will award it." --Johnson.

2. A state of things in which evils or obstacles present themselves on every side, and it is difficult to determine what course to pursue; a vexatious alternative or predicament; a difficult choice or position.

A strong dilemma in a desperate case! To act with infamy, or quit the place. --Swift.

Horns of a dilemma, alternatives, each of which is equally difficult of encountering.

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