phrases, sayings, idioms and expressions at

The Phrase Finder

The meaning and origin of the expression: In a quandary

Browse phrases beginning with:


In a quandary

more like this...
...other phrases about:


Faced with a dilemma - perplexed and uncertain what to do.


A quandary is simply a dilemma or state of extreme uncertainty. The word is now little used, apart from in the phrase in a quandary. This came in to use in the 16th century; for example, in John Lyly's Euphues, the anatomy of wyt, 1579:

"Euphues ... departed, leaving this olde gentleman in a great quandarie."