as in hitch
a danger or difficulty that is hidden or not easily recognized
parents of teenagers never know when they might set off an emotional land mine
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Recent Examples of land mine
The comment was an apparent reference to recent land mine explosions along the border that triggered tensions between the two countries.
—
Aamer Madhani, Fortune, 14 Dec. 2025
During the dictatorships after World War II, the natural barrier of the Accursed Mountains was fortified, set about with land mines, and patrolled, effectively isolating the stronghold of Albania from the rest of the world.
—Literary Hub, 22 Oct. 2025
If Hamas fails to disarm, that will give Netanyahu an excuse to restart the war and avoid all the political land mines that the next phases present him.
—Thomas L. Friedman, Mercury News, 16 Oct. 2025
If Hamas fails to disarm, that will give Netanyahu an excuse to restart the war and avoid all the political land mines that the next phases present him.
—Thomas Friedman, Twin Cities, 15 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for land mine
Aamer Madhani, Fortune, 14 Dec. 2025
During the dictatorships after World War II, the natural barrier of the Accursed Mountains was fortified, set about with land mines, and patrolled, effectively isolating the stronghold of Albania from the rest of the world.
—Literary Hub, 22 Oct. 2025
If Hamas fails to disarm, that will give Netanyahu an excuse to restart the war and avoid all the political land mines that the next phases present him.
—Thomas L. Friedman, Mercury News, 16 Oct. 2025
If Hamas fails to disarm, that will give Netanyahu an excuse to restart the war and avoid all the political land mines that the next phases present him.
—Thomas Friedman, Twin Cities, 15 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for land mine
Recent Examples of Synonyms for land mine
Noun
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The only hitch was that these units were equipped with residential-sized kitchens, meaning limited counter space and small refrigerators and freezers.—
Jordan Bianchi,
New York Times,
12 Feb. 2026
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After months of premature right-wing panic about a performance full of anti-American messaging, the Bad Bunny Super Bowl halftime show went off without a hitch, making its critics seem desperate for a divisive news cycle that wasn’t really in the cards.—
Craig Jenkins,
Vulture,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
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However, adults 65 years and older and children younger than two are at higher risk of developing complications from the flu.—
Koko Nakajima,
CNN Money,
20 Feb. 2026
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There haven’t been any similar incidents recently, Azarcon said, but the Police Department wanted to draw attention to potential risks as graduation season nears.—
Alex Wigglesworth,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Early voting in DuPage County first opened on Tuesday of last week, after a delay caused by another snag.—
Asal Rezaei,
CBS News,
16 Feb. 2026
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Reese Atwood with a nice snag at first.—
Thomas Jones,
Austin American Statesman,
13 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The movie’s biggest laughs come from Kevin’s hijinks, which involve setting up complex booby traps to fend off a pair of burglars targeting his family’s home.—
Shirley Li,
The Atlantic,
30 Jan. 2026
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Their 2025-26 season has been littered with injury landmines and other booby traps hidden in the walls of Ball Arena.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
30 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Land mine.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/land%20mine. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.
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