predicament
pronunciation
How to pronounce predicament in British English:
UK [prɪˈdɪkəmənt]
How to pronounce predicament in American English:
US [prɪˈdɪkəmənt]
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- Noun:
- a situation from which extrication is difficult especially an unpleasant or trying one
Word Origin
- predicament
- predicament: [14] Predicament was originally a technical term in logic, denoting a ‘category of attributes which may be asserted of a thing’. It broadened out in the 16th century to ‘situation’, but it does not seem to have been until the 18th century that the specific modern sense ‘awkward situation’ became established. The word comes from late Latin praedicāmentum, a derivative of praedicāre ‘proclaim’ (source of English preach and predicate [16]). This was a compound verb formed from the prefix prae- ‘in front of’, hence ‘in public’ and dicāre ‘make known’.=> preach, predicate
- predicament (n.)
- early 15c., "category, class; one of Aristotle's 10 categories," from Medieval Latin predicamentum, from Late Latin praedicamentum "quality, category, something predicted, that which is asserted," from Latin praedicatus, past participle of praedicare (see predicate). Praedicamentum is a loan-translation of Greek kategoria, Aristotle's word. The meaning "unpleasant situation" is first recorded 1580s.
Synonym
Example
- 1. Sequentially robbed of his limps by king arthur , the knight refuses to come to terms with his predicament .
- 2. And that may be the key to understanding uber 's current predicament .
- 3. Businesses can find themselves in the same predicament .
- 4. Contrast germany 's luck with the periphery 's predicament .
- 5. China remains wary of its own economic predicament .