conundrum
Americannoun
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a riddle, the answer to which involves a pun or play on words, as What is black and white and read all over? A newspaper.
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anything that puzzles.
noun
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a riddle, esp one whose answer makes a play on words
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a puzzling question or problem
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of conundrum
First recorded in 1590–1600; pseudo-Latin word of obscure origin
Explanation
The tricky word conundrum is used to describe a riddle or puzzle, sometimes including a play on words or pun. One of the most famous conundrums is the riddle of the Sphinx, famously in the play Oedipus the King by Sophocles. Oedipus encounters the Sphinx, a mythical beast, who asks him, "What walks on four legs in the morning, two in the afternoon, and three in the evening?" The answer is "A person": crawling as a child, walking as an adult, and using a cane in old age. The scary thing is that if the Sphinx asked you the riddle and you didn't know, she'd eat you!
Vocabulary lists containing conundrum
100 Top "SAT" Words
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In a Pickle: Words for When You're in Trouble
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100 SAT words Beginning with "C"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Well, that is a conundrum that Mrs. Waters, in the interest of avoiding confrontation with her life’s cognitive dissonance, should probably learn to live with.
From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026
Therein lies the conundrum about when to claim Social Security.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
That points to another conundrum for the health-conscious white-collar urban workforce: Greens are everywhere and in everything.
From Slate ● Jul. 17, 2026
The jurisdictional conundrum grew only worse as the VA issued 99-year leases to local developers to build those initial 1,200 units.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
That was always the conundrum: Had I made the right choice in putting the people’s welfare even before that of my own family?
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Their work is a cultural bridge much like Ashitaka’s effort to bring the worlds of beasts and men together for a common cause, depicting what Miyazaki sees as one of humanism’s central conundrums.
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
Spare a thought for Alan Horsburgh, who has a bundle of conundrums to work through.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026
A trio of comedies about lost, affluent white men grapples with the manly conundrums of our times—and paints a troubled picture of modern men.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 13, 2026
He answered listener conundrums, including which Gabfest host would make the best dictator and what pastry he’d like to be reincarnated as.
From Slate ● Dec. 18, 2025
What senile conundrums was Miss Trixie babbling to Mr. Levy?
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
