# conundrum

/kəˈnəndɹəm/ (US) · /kənˈʌndɹəm/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/conundrum
Updated: 2026-08-08

## Senses

### 1. a difficult problem

noun · CEFR C1 · Academic · Formal

a difficult problem or situation that is hard to solve or understand.

For teachers: a confusing and difficult problem or question that presents a significant challenge to resolve.

- The government faces a conundrum: how to lower taxes while spending more on schools.
- The ethical conundrum of how to balance individual privacy with public safety remains a central theme in modern political debate.

Usage: Often used with the verb 'pose' or 'face'.

Teaching tip: While it can mean a literal riddle, in modern English it almost always refers to a complex practical or intellectual problem.

### 2. a wordplay riddle

noun · CEFR C2 · Literary · Archaic

a type of riddle or joke that uses a play on words.

For teachers: a riddle whose answer involves a pun or play on words; the original sense of the term.

- The old book was full of Victorian conundrums that relied on clever puns.
- The speaker opened his lecture with a classic conundrum, using the wordplay to illustrate the flexibility of the English language.

Teaching tip: This sense is rare today; learners will mostly encounter the 'difficult problem' meaning in news and academic texts.

## Examples

- The team faced a difficult conundrum about where to build the new office.
- The scientist was stuck with a conundrum: the data supported her theory, but the results were impossible to repeat.
- The ethical conundrum of whether to prioritize individual privacy or public safety remains a central debate in modern digital policy.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.