See between a rock and a hard place in All languages combined, or Wiktionary
Download JSON data for between a rock and a hard place meaning in English (18.0kB)
{
"etymology_text": "Originated in the United States before 1918 in southwest, possibly in connection with mining. Related to the concept of the Ancient Greeks: between Scylla and Charybdis.",
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "prepositional phrase",
"head": ""
},
"expansion": "between a rock and a hard place",
"name": "head"
},
{
"args": {},
"expansion": "between a rock and a hard place",
"name": "en-prep phrase"
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "prep_phrase",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
{
"_dis": "46 54",
"kind": "other",
"name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
"parents": [
"Entries with incorrect language header",
"Entry maintenance"
],
"source": "w+disamb"
}
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "2008, David Merde, Beyond Final Arrangements, page 511",
"text": "After meeting again that afternoon with Donna, Wilbur had advised her that she was indeed between a rock and a hard place. She could not hope to recover and build back the lost business until the suits were settled, and it appeared that the only way to settle the suits without going to court was to liquidate the mortuary assets or tap into the Clifton's personal funds.",
"type": "quotation"
},
{
"ref": "2017 March 3, Nintendo EPD, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Nintendo, description for Rock-Hard Food",
"text": "A dish gone awry after adding the wrong ingredient. Chewing your way through this won't be fun, but it will fill you up when you're between a rock and a hard place."
}
],
"glosses": [
"In a difficult and inescapable position."
],
"id": "en-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place-en-prep_phrase-3QpubDre",
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic) In a difficult and inescapable position."
],
"tags": [
"idiomatic"
],
"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "ar",
"lang": "Arabic",
"note": "بَيْنَ المِطْرَقَة وَالسِّنْدَان (bayna l-mitraqa wa s-sindān, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "hy",
"lang": "Armenian",
"note": "երկու քարի արանքում (erku kʿari arankʿum, literally “between two stones”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "bg",
"lang": "Bulgarian",
"note": "между чука́ и накова́лнята (meždu čuká i nakoválnjata, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "ca",
"lang": "Catalan",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "entre l'espasa i la paret"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "cs",
"lang": "Czech",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "dvěma mlýnskými kameny"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "puun ja kuoren välissä"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "valita ruton ja koleran väliltä"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "kiipelissä"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "entre le marteau et l’enclume"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "entre l’arbre et l’écorce"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "pris entre deux feux"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "in der Zwickmühle"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "zwischen Hammer und Amboss"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "zwischen den Stühlen"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "zwischen Baum und Borke"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "weder ein noch aus wissen"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"note": "μπρος γκρεμός και πίσω ρέμα (bros gkremós kai píso réma, literally “cliff in front, torrent behind”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"tags": [
"colloquial"
]
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"note": "μεταξύ σφύρας και άκμωνος (metaxý sfýras kai ákmonos, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"note": "μεταξύ Σκύλλας και Χάρυβδης (metaxý Skýllas kai Cháryvdis, literally “between Scylla and Charybdis”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "he",
"lang": "Hebrew",
"note": "בֵּין הַפַּטִּישׁ וְהַסַּדָּן (bein hapatísh vehasadán, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "á milli steins og sleggju"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "milli tveggja elda"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "it",
"lang": "Italian",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "tra l'incudine e il martello"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"note": "板ばさみ (ita-basami, literally “between two boards”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"alt": "進退兩難",
"code": "ko",
"lang": "Korean",
"roman": "jintoeyangnan",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "진퇴양난"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "ko",
"lang": "Korean",
"roman": "ppaedo bakdo mothanda",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "빼도 박도 못한다"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "la",
"lang": "Latin",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "inter sacrum saxumque"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "la",
"lang": "Latin",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "a fronte praecipitium, a tergo lupi"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "ml",
"lang": "Malayalam",
"note": "ചെകുത്താനും കടലിനുമിടയിൽ (cekuttānuṁ kaṭalinumiṭayil, literally “between the devil and the sea”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "nb",
"lang": "Norwegian Bokmål",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "mellom barken og veden"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "nn",
"lang": "Norwegian Nynorsk",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "mellom borken og veden"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "między młotem a kowadłem"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "entre a cruz e a espada"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "entre a cruz e a caldeirinha"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "ro",
"lang": "Romanian",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "între ciocan și nicovală"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"note": "ме́жду мо́лотом и накова́льней (méždu mólotom i nakoválʹnej, literally “between a hammer and an anvil”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"note": "ме́жду двух огне́й (méždu dvux ognéj, literally “between two fires”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "gd",
"lang": "Scottish Gaelic",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "eadar dà chloich"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "gd",
"lang": "Scottish Gaelic",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "eadar a' chlach is an sgrath"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "entre la espada y la pared"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "vi",
"lang": "Vietnamese",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "tiến thoái lưỡng nan"
},
{
"_dis1": "95 5",
"code": "yi",
"lang": "Yiddish",
"note": "צווישן האַמער און קאָוואַדלע (tsvishn hamer un kovadle, literally “between hammer and anvil”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
}
]
},
{
"categories": [
{
"_dis": "46 54",
"kind": "other",
"name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
"parents": [
"Entries with incorrect language header",
"Entry maintenance"
],
"source": "w+disamb"
}
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1970, David Sim, Tangent",
"text": "Husbands, it seems to me, are caught between the Rock of Feminism and the Hard Place of their own marriages […]",
"type": "quotation"
},
{
"ref": "2008 September 11, Eric Dash, Geraldine Fabrikant, “Washington Mutual stock falls on investor fears”, in New York Times, retrieved 2012-08-24",
"text": "If Washington Mutual needs to raise capital quickly, it will very likely find itself between a rock and a hard place, because credit markets have all but closed their doors to troubled banks.",
"type": "quotation"
}
],
"glosses": [
"Having the choice between two unpleasant or distasteful options; in a predicament or quandary."
],
"id": "en-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place-en-prep_phrase-wYFdTJkF",
"links": [
[
"unpleasant",
"unpleasant"
],
[
"distasteful",
"distasteful"
],
[
"predicament",
"predicament"
],
[
"quandary",
"quandary"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic) Having the choice between two unpleasant or distasteful options; in a predicament or quandary."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "between Scylla and Charybdis"
},
{
"word": "between the devil and the deep blue sea"
},
{
"word": "dilemma"
},
{
"word": "difficult situation"
}
],
"tags": [
"idiomatic"
],
"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "ar",
"lang": "Arabic",
"note": "أَمامَ خِيارَيْنِ أَحْلاهُمَا مُرّ (ʔamāma ḵiyārayni ʔaḥlāhumā murr, literally “having two choices the sweeter of which is bitter”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "bg",
"lang": "Bulgarian",
"note": "между чука́ и накова́лнята (meždu čuká i nakoválnjata, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "yue",
"lang": "Chinese Cantonese",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "進退兩難"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "yue",
"lang": "Chinese Cantonese",
"roman": "zeon³ teoi³ loeng⁵ naan⁴",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "进退两难"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "hak",
"lang": "Hakka Chinese",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "進退兩難"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "hak",
"lang": "Hakka Chinese",
"roman": "chin-thui-lióng-nàn",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "进退两难"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "nan-hbl",
"lang": "Chinese",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"tags": [
"Hokkien"
],
"word": "進退兩難"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "nan-hbl",
"lang": "Chinese",
"roman": "zh-min-nan",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"tags": [
"Hokkien"
],
"word": "进退两难"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "進退兩難"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "jìntuìliǎngnán",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "进退两难"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "da",
"lang": "Danish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "(valge) mellem pest og kolera"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "nl",
"lang": "Dutch",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "(kiezen) tussen pest en cholera"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "eo",
"lang": "Esperanto",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "esti inter martelo kaj amboso"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "puun ja kuoren välissä"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "kahden tulen välissä"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "entre la peste et le choléra"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "entre le marteau et l’enclume"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "zwischen Pest und Cholera"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"note": "μπρος γκρεμός και πίσω ρέμα (bros gkremós kai píso réma, literally “cliff in front, torrent behind”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"tags": [
"colloquial"
]
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"note": "μεταξύ σφύρας και άκμωνος (metaxý sfýras kai ákmonos, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"note": "μεταξύ Σκύλλας και Χάρυβδης (metaxý Skýllas kai Cháryvdis, literally “between Scylla and Charybdis”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "kutyaszorító"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "két tűz között"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "két malomkő között"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "nem tudja, melyik ujját harapja le"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "nehéz helyzetben"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "á milli steins og sleggju"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "milli tveggja elda"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "it",
"lang": "Italian",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "fra l'incudine ed il martello"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"note": "前門の虎、後門の狼 (ぜんもんのとら、こうもんのおおかみ; zenmon no tora, kōmon no ōkami, literally “a tiger at the front gate, a wolf at the back gate”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "między młotem a kowadłem"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "entre a cruz e a espada"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "entre a espada e a parede"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"note": "ме́жду двух огне́й (méždu dvux ognéj, literally “between two fires”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"note": "ме́жду мо́лотом и накова́льней (méždu mólotom i nakoválʹnej, literally “between hammer and anvil”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"note": "ме́жду Сци́ллой и Хари́бдой (méždu Scílloj i Xaríbdoj, literally “between Scylla and Charybdis”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "gd",
"lang": "Scottish Gaelic",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "eadar a' chlach is an sgrath"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "entre la espada y la pared"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "sv",
"lang": "Swedish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "mellan pest och kolera"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "sv",
"lang": "Swedish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "mellan två eldar"
},
{
"_dis1": "2 98",
"code": "sv",
"lang": "Swedish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "i valet och kvalet"
}
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"audio": "en-us-between a rock and a hard place.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/2/24/En-us-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place.ogg/En-us-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/En-us-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place.ogg",
"tags": [
"US"
],
"text": "Audio (US)"
},
{
"audio": "en-au-between a rock and a hard place.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/5/54/En-au-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place.ogg/En-au-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/En-au-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place.ogg",
"tags": [
"Australia"
],
"text": "Audio (AU)"
}
],
"word": "between a rock and a hard place"
}
{
"categories": [
"English entries with incorrect language header",
"English lemmas",
"English multiword terms",
"English prepositional phrases",
"English terms with audio links",
"Requests for review of Czech translations",
"Requests for review of Hindi translations",
"Requests for review of Khmer translations",
"Requests for review of Mandarin translations",
"Requests for review of Telugu translations"
],
"etymology_text": "Originated in the United States before 1918 in southwest, possibly in connection with mining. Related to the concept of the Ancient Greeks: between Scylla and Charybdis.",
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "prepositional phrase",
"head": ""
},
"expansion": "between a rock and a hard place",
"name": "head"
},
{
"args": {},
"expansion": "between a rock and a hard place",
"name": "en-prep phrase"
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "prep_phrase",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
"English idioms",
"English terms with quotations"
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "2008, David Merde, Beyond Final Arrangements, page 511",
"text": "After meeting again that afternoon with Donna, Wilbur had advised her that she was indeed between a rock and a hard place. She could not hope to recover and build back the lost business until the suits were settled, and it appeared that the only way to settle the suits without going to court was to liquidate the mortuary assets or tap into the Clifton's personal funds.",
"type": "quotation"
},
{
"ref": "2017 March 3, Nintendo EPD, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Nintendo, description for Rock-Hard Food",
"text": "A dish gone awry after adding the wrong ingredient. Chewing your way through this won't be fun, but it will fill you up when you're between a rock and a hard place."
}
],
"glosses": [
"In a difficult and inescapable position."
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic) In a difficult and inescapable position."
],
"tags": [
"idiomatic"
]
},
{
"categories": [
"English idioms",
"English terms with quotations",
"Quotation templates to be cleaned"
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1970, David Sim, Tangent",
"text": "Husbands, it seems to me, are caught between the Rock of Feminism and the Hard Place of their own marriages […]",
"type": "quotation"
},
{
"ref": "2008 September 11, Eric Dash, Geraldine Fabrikant, “Washington Mutual stock falls on investor fears”, in New York Times, retrieved 2012-08-24",
"text": "If Washington Mutual needs to raise capital quickly, it will very likely find itself between a rock and a hard place, because credit markets have all but closed their doors to troubled banks.",
"type": "quotation"
}
],
"glosses": [
"Having the choice between two unpleasant or distasteful options; in a predicament or quandary."
],
"links": [
[
"unpleasant",
"unpleasant"
],
[
"distasteful",
"distasteful"
],
[
"predicament",
"predicament"
],
[
"quandary",
"quandary"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic) Having the choice between two unpleasant or distasteful options; in a predicament or quandary."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "between Scylla and Charybdis"
},
{
"word": "between the devil and the deep blue sea"
},
{
"word": "dilemma"
},
{
"word": "difficult situation"
}
],
"tags": [
"idiomatic"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"audio": "en-us-between a rock and a hard place.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/2/24/En-us-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place.ogg/En-us-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/En-us-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place.ogg",
"tags": [
"US"
],
"text": "Audio (US)"
},
{
"audio": "en-au-between a rock and a hard place.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/5/54/En-au-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place.ogg/En-au-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/En-au-between_a_rock_and_a_hard_place.ogg",
"tags": [
"Australia"
],
"text": "Audio (AU)"
}
],
"translations": [
{
"code": "ar",
"lang": "Arabic",
"note": "بَيْنَ المِطْرَقَة وَالسِّنْدَان (bayna l-mitraqa wa s-sindān, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"code": "hy",
"lang": "Armenian",
"note": "երկու քարի արանքում (erku kʿari arankʿum, literally “between two stones”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"code": "bg",
"lang": "Bulgarian",
"note": "между чука́ и накова́лнята (meždu čuká i nakoválnjata, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"code": "ca",
"lang": "Catalan",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "entre l'espasa i la paret"
},
{
"code": "cs",
"lang": "Czech",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "dvěma mlýnskými kameny"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "puun ja kuoren välissä"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "valita ruton ja koleran väliltä"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "kiipelissä"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "entre le marteau et l’enclume"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "entre l’arbre et l’écorce"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "pris entre deux feux"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "in der Zwickmühle"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "zwischen Hammer und Amboss"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "zwischen den Stühlen"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "zwischen Baum und Borke"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "weder ein noch aus wissen"
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"note": "μπρος γκρεμός και πίσω ρέμα (bros gkremós kai píso réma, literally “cliff in front, torrent behind”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"tags": [
"colloquial"
]
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"note": "μεταξύ σφύρας και άκμωνος (metaxý sfýras kai ákmonos, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"note": "μεταξύ Σκύλλας και Χάρυβδης (metaxý Skýllas kai Cháryvdis, literally “between Scylla and Charybdis”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"code": "he",
"lang": "Hebrew",
"note": "בֵּין הַפַּטִּישׁ וְהַסַּדָּן (bein hapatísh vehasadán, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "á milli steins og sleggju"
},
{
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "milli tveggja elda"
},
{
"code": "it",
"lang": "Italian",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "tra l'incudine e il martello"
},
{
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"note": "板ばさみ (ita-basami, literally “between two boards”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"alt": "進退兩難",
"code": "ko",
"lang": "Korean",
"roman": "jintoeyangnan",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "진퇴양난"
},
{
"code": "ko",
"lang": "Korean",
"roman": "ppaedo bakdo mothanda",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "빼도 박도 못한다"
},
{
"code": "la",
"lang": "Latin",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "inter sacrum saxumque"
},
{
"code": "la",
"lang": "Latin",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "a fronte praecipitium, a tergo lupi"
},
{
"code": "ml",
"lang": "Malayalam",
"note": "ചെകുത്താനും കടലിനുമിടയിൽ (cekuttānuṁ kaṭalinumiṭayil, literally “between the devil and the sea”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"code": "nb",
"lang": "Norwegian Bokmål",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "mellom barken og veden"
},
{
"code": "nn",
"lang": "Norwegian Nynorsk",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "mellom borken og veden"
},
{
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "między młotem a kowadłem"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "entre a cruz e a espada"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "entre a cruz e a caldeirinha"
},
{
"code": "ro",
"lang": "Romanian",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "între ciocan și nicovală"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"note": "ме́жду мо́лотом и накова́льней (méždu mólotom i nakoválʹnej, literally “between a hammer and an anvil”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"note": "ме́жду двух огне́й (méždu dvux ognéj, literally “between two fires”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"code": "gd",
"lang": "Scottish Gaelic",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "eadar dà chloich"
},
{
"code": "gd",
"lang": "Scottish Gaelic",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "eadar a' chlach is an sgrath"
},
{
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "entre la espada y la pared"
},
{
"code": "vi",
"lang": "Vietnamese",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position",
"word": "tiến thoái lưỡng nan"
},
{
"code": "yi",
"lang": "Yiddish",
"note": "צווישן האַמער און קאָוואַדלע (tsvishn hamer un kovadle, literally “between hammer and anvil”)",
"sense": "in a difficult and inescapable position"
},
{
"code": "ar",
"lang": "Arabic",
"note": "أَمامَ خِيارَيْنِ أَحْلاهُمَا مُرّ (ʔamāma ḵiyārayni ʔaḥlāhumā murr, literally “having two choices the sweeter of which is bitter”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"code": "bg",
"lang": "Bulgarian",
"note": "между чука́ и накова́лнята (meždu čuká i nakoválnjata, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"code": "yue",
"lang": "Chinese Cantonese",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "進退兩難"
},
{
"code": "yue",
"lang": "Chinese Cantonese",
"roman": "zeon³ teoi³ loeng⁵ naan⁴",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "进退两难"
},
{
"code": "hak",
"lang": "Hakka Chinese",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "進退兩難"
},
{
"code": "hak",
"lang": "Hakka Chinese",
"roman": "chin-thui-lióng-nàn",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "进退两难"
},
{
"code": "nan-hbl",
"lang": "Chinese",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"tags": [
"Hokkien"
],
"word": "進退兩難"
},
{
"code": "nan-hbl",
"lang": "Chinese",
"roman": "zh-min-nan",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"tags": [
"Hokkien"
],
"word": "进退两难"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "進退兩難"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "jìntuìliǎngnán",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "进退两难"
},
{
"code": "da",
"lang": "Danish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "(valge) mellem pest og kolera"
},
{
"code": "nl",
"lang": "Dutch",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "(kiezen) tussen pest en cholera"
},
{
"code": "eo",
"lang": "Esperanto",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "esti inter martelo kaj amboso"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "puun ja kuoren välissä"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "kahden tulen välissä"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "entre la peste et le choléra"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "entre le marteau et l’enclume"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "zwischen Pest und Cholera"
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"note": "μπρος γκρεμός και πίσω ρέμα (bros gkremós kai píso réma, literally “cliff in front, torrent behind”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"tags": [
"colloquial"
]
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"note": "μεταξύ σφύρας και άκμωνος (metaxý sfýras kai ákmonos, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"note": "μεταξύ Σκύλλας και Χάρυβδης (metaxý Skýllas kai Cháryvdis, literally “between Scylla and Charybdis”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "kutyaszorító"
},
{
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "két tűz között"
},
{
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "két malomkő között"
},
{
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "nem tudja, melyik ujját harapja le"
},
{
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "nehéz helyzetben"
},
{
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "á milli steins og sleggju"
},
{
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "milli tveggja elda"
},
{
"code": "it",
"lang": "Italian",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "fra l'incudine ed il martello"
},
{
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"note": "前門の虎、後門の狼 (ぜんもんのとら、こうもんのおおかみ; zenmon no tora, kōmon no ōkami, literally “a tiger at the front gate, a wolf at the back gate”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "między młotem a kowadłem"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "entre a cruz e a espada"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "entre a espada e a parede"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"note": "ме́жду двух огне́й (méždu dvux ognéj, literally “between two fires”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"note": "ме́жду мо́лотом и накова́льней (méždu mólotom i nakoválʹnej, literally “between hammer and anvil”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"note": "ме́жду Сци́ллой и Хари́бдой (méždu Scílloj i Xaríbdoj, literally “between Scylla and Charybdis”)",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options"
},
{
"code": "gd",
"lang": "Scottish Gaelic",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "eadar a' chlach is an sgrath"
},
{
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "entre la espada y la pared"
},
{
"code": "sv",
"lang": "Swedish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "mellan pest och kolera"
},
{
"code": "sv",
"lang": "Swedish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "mellan två eldar"
},
{
"code": "sv",
"lang": "Swedish",
"sense": "having the choice between two unpleasant options",
"word": "i valet och kvalet"
}
],
"word": "between a rock and a hard place"
}
This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-04-26 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-04-21 using wiktextract (93a6c53 and 21a9316). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.
If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.