predicament
noun
pre·dic·a·ment
pri-ˈdi-kə-mənt 
sense 1 is usually ˈpre-di-kə-
1
: the character, status, or classification assigned by a predication
specifically
: category sense 1
Examples of predicament in a Sentence
The captain of archers fidgeted and coughed and rolled his eyes at his men, as if such cupidity and dishonor were an inevitable but minor aspect of the human predicament …
—
Michael Chabon, New York Times Magazine, 6 May 2007
We saw photographs that week of buildings burning, stunned onlookers, dust-covered firemen. Very few pictures conveyed the fact that people just like us, our fellow passengers on the subway, suddenly found themselves in a mortal predicament and many died horribly.
—Garrison Keillor, New York Times Book Review, 3 Sept. 2006
The President found himself in the backwash of earlier deals, and the demands of secrecy made his predicament the more vexing.
—Taylor Branch, Parting the Waters, 1988
The governor has gotten himself into quite a predicament.
I don't know how to get out of the predicament I'm in.
Michael Chabon, New York Times Magazine, 6 May 2007
We saw photographs that week of buildings burning, stunned onlookers, dust-covered firemen. Very few pictures conveyed the fact that people just like us, our fellow passengers on the subway, suddenly found themselves in a mortal predicament and many died horribly.
—Garrison Keillor, New York Times Book Review, 3 Sept. 2006
The President found himself in the backwash of earlier deals, and the demands of secrecy made his predicament the more vexing.
—Taylor Branch, Parting the Waters, 1988
The governor has gotten himself into quite a predicament.
I don't know how to get out of the predicament I'm in.
Recent Examples on the Web
But the Orioles’ predicament is not all that complicated.
—Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2025
Now he’s found himself in the very same predicament that DeSantis once did.
—Drew Nelles, Time, 28 Apr. 2025
Evans told Netflix about a specific scene in which Mother and Lawrence discuss how their sons ended up in this predicament while taking responsibility for their own roles.
—Skyler Trepel, People.com, 26 Apr. 2025
When faced with the same predicament last spring, Karaban chose to declare but then withdrew after the Draft Combine.
—Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 24 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for predicament
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Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2025
Now he’s found himself in the very same predicament that DeSantis once did.
—Drew Nelles, Time, 28 Apr. 2025
Evans told Netflix about a specific scene in which Mother and Lawrence discuss how their sons ended up in this predicament while taking responsibility for their own roles.
—Skyler Trepel, People.com, 26 Apr. 2025
When faced with the same predicament last spring, Karaban chose to declare but then withdrew after the Draft Combine.
—Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 24 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for predicament
Cite this Entry
“Predicament.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/predicament. Accessed 4 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
predicament
noun
pre·dic·a·ment
pri-ˈdik-ə-mənt
: a difficult, puzzling, or trying situation : fix
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