as in dilemma
a situation in which one has to choose between two or more equally unsatisfactory choices
I'm in a quandary about whether I should try to repair my stereo or buy a new one, even though I don't have the money to do either
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Recent Examples of quandary
Trent Williams could be traded if the San Francisco 49ers fail to solve the quandary of his sky-high salary cap hit in 2026.
—
Noah Furtado, San Francisco Chronicle, 10 Mar. 2026
Trump’s strikes on Iran last June, and the arrest of Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro last month, caused a similar quandary.
—Dallas Morning News, 28 Feb. 2026
Eric Jaye, one of my campaign consultants, could see my quandary.
—Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2026
The life of a globe-trotting environmentalist is a breeding ground for moral quandaries.
—Rob Wolfe, The Atlantic, 19 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for quandary
Noah Furtado, San Francisco Chronicle, 10 Mar. 2026
Trump’s strikes on Iran last June, and the arrest of Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro last month, caused a similar quandary.
—Dallas Morning News, 28 Feb. 2026
Eric Jaye, one of my campaign consultants, could see my quandary.
—Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2026
The life of a globe-trotting environmentalist is a breeding ground for moral quandaries.
—Rob Wolfe, The Atlantic, 19 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for quandary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for quandary
dilemma
Noun
-
Such local sites focus on a small group of people who happened to live in a certain place at a certain time—and who, for that fleeting moment, came to stand in for the dilemmas of the nation at large.—
Beverly Gage,
The Atlantic,
5 Apr. 2026
-
For the present, we’re saddled with the unwieldy dilemma of there being eight major Democratic candidates and just two Republicans.—
George Skelton,
Mercury News,
3 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Quandary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quandary. Accessed 8 Apr. 2026.
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