Definition of dilemma

< dildo

dilettante >

di·lem·ma    (d-lm) KEY 

NOUN:

1. A situation that requires a choice between options that are or seem equally unfavorable or mutually exclusive.
2. Usage Problem A problem that seems to defy a satisfactory solution.
3. Logic An argument that presents two alternatives, each of which has the same consequence.

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ETYMOLOGY:
Late Latin, from Greek dilmma, ambiguous proposition : di-, two ; see di-¹ + lmma, proposition ; see lemma¹

OTHER FORMS:
dilem·matic  (dl-mtk) KEY (Adjective)
Usage Note:
In its main sense dilemma refers to a situation in which a choice must be made between alternative courses of action or argument. Although citational evidence attests to widespread use of the term meaning simply "a problem" or "a predicament" and involving no issue of choice, 74 percent of the Usage Panel rejects the sentence Juvenile drug abuse is the great dilemma of the 1980s.·It is sometimes claimed that because the di- in dilemma comes from a Greek prefix meaning "two," the word should be used only when exactly two choices are involved. Nevertheless, 64 percent of the Usage Panel accepts its use for choices among three or more options.