as in dilemma
a difficult, puzzling, or embarrassing situation from which there is no easy escape
with both sets of in-laws insisting that we spend Thanksgiving with them, we were on a sticky wicket indeed
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Recent Examples of sticky wicket
To that, timestamps may prove a sticky wicket for a part of Baldoni’s argument against the Times.
—
Dominic Patten, Deadline, 17 Mar. 2025
The other sticky wicket in the Paramount-Skydance merger is Trump’s current lawsuit against CBS News.
—Bethy Squires, Vulture, 26 Feb. 2025
That third spot is a sticky wicket for a team projected to be just outside the top five in the game.
—Eno Sarris, The Athletic, 7 Jan. 2025
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK published 18 September 2024
A cricketing powerhouse for decades, Pakistan's national team have suddenly found themselves on a sticky wicket.
—Harriet Marsden, theweek, 18 Sep. 2024
Much of its lexicon sounds both unapproachable and, well, just weird: sticky wicket, googly, yorker, jaffa, daisy cutter, silly mid off, maiden over, tickle, nurdle, trundler, paddle scoop, popping crease, golden duck.
—Chris Heath, The Atlantic, 25 July 2024
While reforms have been proposed in the past under other leaders, they have gotten caught up in a sticky wicket of state bureaucracy.
—Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 20 June 2024
The situation is a sticky wicket, to use an old-fashioned term from the sport of cricket, for the countless interest groups that depend on money from the budget.
—Dan Walters, The Mercury News, 4 May 2024
In contrast, altering and editing an image can be a much more nuanced process that makes determining what part is from humans a sticky wicket.
—Drew McLellan, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2023
Dominic Patten, Deadline, 17 Mar. 2025
The other sticky wicket in the Paramount-Skydance merger is Trump’s current lawsuit against CBS News.
—Bethy Squires, Vulture, 26 Feb. 2025
That third spot is a sticky wicket for a team projected to be just outside the top five in the game.
—Eno Sarris, The Athletic, 7 Jan. 2025
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK published 18 September 2024
A cricketing powerhouse for decades, Pakistan's national team have suddenly found themselves on a sticky wicket.
—Harriet Marsden, theweek, 18 Sep. 2024
Much of its lexicon sounds both unapproachable and, well, just weird: sticky wicket, googly, yorker, jaffa, daisy cutter, silly mid off, maiden over, tickle, nurdle, trundler, paddle scoop, popping crease, golden duck.
—Chris Heath, The Atlantic, 25 July 2024
While reforms have been proposed in the past under other leaders, they have gotten caught up in a sticky wicket of state bureaucracy.
—Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 20 June 2024
The situation is a sticky wicket, to use an old-fashioned term from the sport of cricket, for the countless interest groups that depend on money from the budget.
—Dan Walters, The Mercury News, 4 May 2024
In contrast, altering and editing an image can be a much more nuanced process that makes determining what part is from humans a sticky wicket.
—Drew McLellan, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sticky wicket
Noun
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The National Women’s Soccer League, which raised its media rights fees nearly 60 times over with a series of deals that kicked off in 2024, finds itself in a similar dilemma.—
Justin Birnbaum,
Forbes.com,
15 May 2025
-
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., avoided addressing the dilemma with reporters on Wednesday.—
Claudia Grisales,
NPR,
14 May 2025
Noun
-
Fey lays out a number of ways to deal with this predicament.—
Belinda Luscombe,
Time,
9 May 2025
-
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
-
At one point during the game, Ottawa had packets of mustard and pickle juice on the bench, according to rinkside reporter Kelly Greig.—
Hailey Salvian,
New York Times,
12 May 2025
-
The salt, fat and juice smother the pickles and mustard, snuffing out the vinegar and tang.—
Jenn Harris,
Los Angeles Times,
12 May 2025
Noun
-
Private contractors under the supervision of St. Paul Public Works will spend up to two months repairing the man-sized sink hole that opened on the evening of May 8, forcing ongoing partial road closures between Chestnut and Walnut streets.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
13 May 2025
-
The screws may loosen and allow engine oil to leak from the screw holes, according to the recall report.—
James Powel,
USA Today,
13 May 2025
Noun
-
The game began, rain fell two innings in, and Odorizzi’s start was wiped out, which left the Twins in a bind.—
Dan Hayes,
New York Times,
2 May 2025
-
In practical terms, losing accreditation means losing aid, which puts current students in a bind.—
Shahar Ziv,
Forbes.com,
24 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Congratulations–you’ve gone down a Wiki rabbit hole (a real thing, with its own Wikipedia page).—
Ann Kowal Smith,
Forbes.com,
18 Apr. 2025
-
That decline was under 6%, to give you an idea of just how far the rabbit hole the market is right now.—
Matt Egan,
CNN Money,
7 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
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
-
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
Cite this Entry
“Sticky wicket.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sticky%20wicket. Accessed 22 May. 2025.
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