first world problem

noun

variants or first-world problem or less commonly First World problem or First-World problem

: a usually minor or trivial problem or annoyance experienced by people in relatively affluent or privileged circumstances especially as contrasted with problems of greater social significance facing people in poor and underdeveloped parts of the world

In terms of first world problems, the biggest one is probably a cracked phone screen.

—Ben Sin

Examples of first world problem in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

My first world problem involves being alone, separated from my husband, and now separated from my new boyfriend, as well. —Anne Liu Kellor, Longreads, 4 May 2020

Bringing a stuffy nose home from vacation, chipping a fresh manicure, Seamless forgetting your extra ranch dressing, again — first world problems, man. —refinery29.com, 29 June 2018

Word History

First Known Use

1979, in the meaning defined above