conundrum

WOTD – 20 November 2007    

English

Etymology

A word of unknown origin, probably coined in burlesque imitation of scholastic Latin, as “hocus-pocus” or “panjandrum.”

Pronunciation

• (RP, US) IPA: /kəˈnʌn.dɹəm/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

conundrum (plural conundrums or conundra)

1. A difficult question or riddle, especially one using a play on words in the answer.
   • 1816, Jane Austen, Emma, Vol. 1, Ch. 2

     “Why should I understand that, or anything else?” asked the girl. “Don’t bother my head by asking conundrums, I beg of you. Just let me discover myself in my own way.”

2. A difficult choice or decision that must be made.
   • 2004, Martha Stewart, statement read before being sentenced to five months in prison

     And while I am more concerned about the well-being of others than for myself, more hurt for them and for their losses than for my own, more worried for their futures than for the future of Martha Stewart the person, you are faced with a conundrum, a problem of monumental, to me, proportions.

Quotations

• For usage examples of this term, see the citations page.

Synonyms

• (difficult question): brain-teaser, enigma, puzzle, riddle
• (difficult choice): dilemma

Translations

difficult question or riddle

• Armenian: գլուխկոտրուկ (hy) (gluxkotruk), հանելուկ (hy) (haneluk), առեղծված (hy) (aṙegçvaç)
• Bulgarian: гатанка (bg) (gatanka) f, загадка (bg) (zagadka) f
• Czech: hádanka (cs) f
• Danish: gåde (da) c, ordgåde (da) c
• Dutch: raadsel (nl) n, hersenbreker (nl)
• Finnish: arvoitus (fi), kompakysymys (fi), kompa (fi)
• French: énigme (fr) f, problème (fr) m, casse-tête (fr) m
• German: Rätsel (de) n, Rätsel (de) n, Scherzfrage (de) f, schwierige Frage (de) f, Vexierfrage (de) f

• Greek: αίνιγμα (el) (aínigma) n, γρίφος (el) (grífos) m, (colloquial) σπαζοκεφαλιά (el) (spazokefaliá) f
• Italian: rompicapo (it)
• Portuguese: adivinha (pt) f
• Russian: загадка (ru) (zagádka) f, головоломка (ru) (golovolómka) f
• Spanish: adivinanza (es), acertijo (es) n
• Turkish: bilmece (tr), muamma (tr)

difficult choice or decision

• Danish: hovedbrud (da) n
• Dutch: dilemma (nl) n
• Finnish: pulma (fi)
• French: dilemme (fr) m
• Georgian: თავსატეხი (ka) (t'avsatexi)

• Greek: δίλημμα (el) (díllima) n
• Portuguese: dilema (pt) m
• Russian: дилемма (ru) (dilémma) f
• Spanish: interrogante (es) n dilema (es) n
• Swedish: dilemma (sv) n

External links

• Conundrum on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Conundrum in the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica.