1
as in predicament
a difficult, puzzling, or embarrassing situation from which there is no easy escape
the party was once again facing its quadrennial quagmire: the candidate sufficiently liberal to win the nomination would be too liberal for the general election
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of quagmire
The reasons for the ongoing bargaining quagmire since that contract expired in June 2021 are in dispute, but real issues remain.
—
Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 8 Apr. 2025
This is not a bureaucratic quagmire or a FEMA-like situation.
—Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 7 Feb. 2025
At the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, heavy rains—likely influenced by the volcanic disruptions—turned the battlefield into a muddy quagmire, delaying Napoleon's attacks and aiding the Allied forces' eventual victory.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 8 Dec. 2024
For his part, Trump seems utterly undeterred by this political quagmire.
—Philip Elliott, Time, 7 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for quagmire
Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 8 Apr. 2025
This is not a bureaucratic quagmire or a FEMA-like situation.
—Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 7 Feb. 2025
At the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, heavy rains—likely influenced by the volcanic disruptions—turned the battlefield into a muddy quagmire, delaying Napoleon's attacks and aiding the Allied forces' eventual victory.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 8 Dec. 2024
For his part, Trump seems utterly undeterred by this political quagmire.
—Philip Elliott, Time, 7 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for quagmire
Recent Examples of Synonyms for quagmire
Noun
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Fey lays out a number of ways to deal with this predicament.—
Belinda Luscombe,
Time,
9 May 2025
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So their only way out of this predicament is also the hardest — trading the star who elevated the team for a decade.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
7 May 2025
Noun
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All of our experts agree that silk and satin bonnets protect hair from the harsh friction caused by cotton pillowcases, which can lead to dryness, tangles, frizz, and breakage over time.—
Jailynn Taylor,
Allure,
5 Apr. 2025
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But after the onset of dementia with high tau tangles, anti-tau therapy or one of the many other experimental approaches may be more effective.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
3 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Defensive dilemmas While Arsenal attackers are a challenge to back with rotation expected due to the Champions League, there may be some stability among their goalkeeper and central defenders.—
Holly Shand,
New York Times,
1 May 2025
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The action in Rust is propelled by an accidental killing and its central moral dilemma concerns an infamous man trying to do the right thing.—
Lovia Gyarkye,
HollywoodReporter,
30 Apr. 2025
Noun
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In recent years, the crabs have also been spreading across the United Kingdom, where authorities are experimenting with traps to prevent them from migrating to downstream breeding grounds.—
Sarah Kuta,
Smithsonian Magazine,
2 May 2025
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The Hill: Democrats have fallen into a narrative trap with Abrego Garcia.—
Jonathan Easley,
The Hill,
30 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Tomato slices are slipping out, pickles are disappearing and the bread can get soggy. Build a better burger like this: Toast the bun.—
Joe Difazio,
USA Today,
26 Apr. 2025
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The chicken sandwich is served with coleslaw, pickles and a house sauce on a brioche bun.—
Carlos Rico,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
17 Apr. 2025
Noun
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What happened next has become a matter of intrigue and resulted in a sprawling legal morass that has consumed Hollywood and sparked intense public interest.—
Tatiana Siegel,
Variety,
21 Mar. 2025
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And then, in 2010, Inna died without any children or a will, leaving behind a morass of 20,000 books, manuscripts, files and correspondence in their cluttered Bronx apartment.—
Joseph Berger,
New York Times,
24 Feb. 2025
Noun
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My Dien is a hurried cluster that has grown up ad hoc, with buildings of varying sizes rising like reeds from a fertile swamp.—
Damien Cave,
New York Times,
30 Apr. 2025
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To fight an elusive enemy operating clandestinely at night and from hideouts deep in swamps and jungles, the U.S. military turned to environmental modification technologies.—
Pamela McElwee,
The Conversation,
28 Apr. 2025
Noun
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However, these systems become organizational quicksand in volatile environments where exceptions become the rule.—
Nate Bennett,
Forbes.com,
21 Apr. 2025
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From sticky asphalt graves to dinosaur-eating quicksand, these sites reveal how nature sometimes sets its own snares, and how life—on a mass scale—meets its end.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes,
21 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Quagmire.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quagmire. Accessed 15 May. 2025.
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