Synonyms of quagmires

quagmires

noun

plural of quagmire

1

as in dilemmas

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• dilemmas
• predicaments
• pickles
• swamps
• holes
• mires
• corners
• difficulties
• impasses
• jams
• binds
• crises
• rabbit holes
• boxes
• fixes
• spots
• plights
• rattraps
• sticky wickets
• kettles of fish
• jackpots
• quandaries
• troubles
• nodes
• straits
• catch-22's
• soups
• logjams
• exigencies
• emergencies
• standstills
• hot waters
• crossroads
• deadlocks
• stalemates
• scrapes
• clutches
• pinches
• halts
• junctures

2

as in tangles

something that catches and holds

a protracted custody dispute that became a judicial quagmire

Synonyms & Similar Words

• tangles
• traps
• entanglements
• quicksands
• morasses
• labyrinths
• mazes
• toils
• webs
• snares
• meshes
• nets
• nooses
• tanglements
• snarls
• knots
• cobwebs
• spiderwebs
• cat's cradles

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of quagmires

At heart, structures and incentives pull Washington back, repeatedly, to avoidable quagmires. — Emma Ashford, Foreign Affairs, 12 Aug. 2026

Jeane used the example not to say that any of the three were in danger of closing, but to point out one of the enrollment quagmires in the district that covers 70 square miles. — Jennah Pendleton, Sacbee.com, 21 Apr. 2026

Despite a few diversions along the way, Minney keeps returning to craft as a solution to fashion’s many quagmires. — Jasmin Malik Chua, Footwear News, 14 Apr. 2026

But these occupations soon became bloody quagmires, with hundreds of military and tens of thousands of civilian casualties. — Mo Rocca, CBS News, 11 Jan. 2026

But this is the wrong time for political sideshows or ethical quagmires. — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 15 Aug. 2025