double bind

noun

Definition of double bind

: a psychological predicament in which a person receives from a single source conflicting messages that allow no appropriate response to be made broadly : dilemma sense 1

Synonyms Example Sentences Learn More about double bind

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Synonyms for double bind

Synonyms

catch-22, dilemma, quandary

Examples of double bind in a Sentence

the double bind faced by every politician: responding to scurrilous charges only gives them unwarranted publicity; not responding to such charges is often interpreted as an admission of guilt

Recent Examples on the Web

Timely and important articulation of the double bind immigrants find themselves in, and why some — in this case the children — turn to extremism. — New York Times, "‘Surprised and Dismayed’: Readers Respond to Our Best 25 Plays List," 22 June 2018 Mr Trump’s trade policies have put Harley-Davidson in a double bind. — The Economist, "American firms will be hit hard by retaliatory tariffs," 7 June 2018 These views, deeply ingrained in American society even today, put mothers in a political double bind. — Jill Filipovic, The New Republic, "Female candidates are turning gender and motherhood into political assets in the midterms.," 29 May 2018 This is also, Tannen says, a byproduct of the double bind; because directness is often read as aggression, women learn to handle confrontation in indirect, self-consciously accommodating ways as well. — Ashley Fetters, The Cut, "The Strict, Subtle Rules of a Hey Ladies! Email," 1 May 2018 In many states, this precludes transfer of Social Security numbers, dates of birth, and other data—a double bind that would make any federal data-matching and verification task, an endeavor traditionally reserved to state coordination, futile. — Julia Powles, Slate Magazine, "Trump’s Voter Data Haul Tests the Privacy of Public Records," 12 July 2017 While the researchers are careful to note that their findings do not establish any causal relationships, even the observed correlations present a tragic double bind. — Jay Willis, GQ, "All That Exercise You're Doing Could Be Making You Bad at Sex," 22 Oct. 2017 The double bind for female candidates is that women who contend for power are less likely than men to be seen as likeable, but likeability has outsized importance for them. — Michelle Goldberg, Slate Magazine, "Will We Ever Have a Woman as President?," 31 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'double bind.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.