as in dilemma
a difficult, puzzling, or embarrassing situation from which there is no easy escape
with both sets of in-laws insisting that we spend Thanksgiving with them, we were on a sticky wicket indeed
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Recent Examples of sticky wicket
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK published 18 September 2024
A cricketing powerhouse for decades, Pakistan's national team have suddenly found themselves on a sticky wicket.
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Harriet Marsden, theweek, 18 Sep. 2024
Much of its lexicon sounds both unapproachable and, well, just weird: sticky wicket, googly, yorker, jaffa, daisy cutter, silly mid off, maiden over, tickle, nurdle, trundler, paddle scoop, popping crease, golden duck.
—Chris Heath, The Atlantic, 25 July 2024
While reforms have been proposed in the past under other leaders, they have gotten caught up in a sticky wicket of state bureaucracy.
—Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 20 June 2024
The situation is a sticky wicket, to use an old-fashioned term from the sport of cricket, for the countless interest groups that depend on money from the budget.
—Dan Walters, The Mercury News, 4 May 2024
In contrast, altering and editing an image can be a much more nuanced process that makes determining what part is from humans a sticky wicket.
—Drew McLellan, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2023
As with all questions of volcanic behaviour, the real sticky wicket is timing.
—Erik Klemetti, Discover Magazine, 13 June 2023
Ant Group are currently on a sticky wicket.
—Prathamesh Mulye, Quartz, 22 Mar. 2021
What is a sticky wicket is when partner is subordinate to the other.
—Jenna Reyes, BostonGlobe.com, 28 Jan. 2023
Harriet Marsden, theweek, 18 Sep. 2024
Much of its lexicon sounds both unapproachable and, well, just weird: sticky wicket, googly, yorker, jaffa, daisy cutter, silly mid off, maiden over, tickle, nurdle, trundler, paddle scoop, popping crease, golden duck.
—Chris Heath, The Atlantic, 25 July 2024
While reforms have been proposed in the past under other leaders, they have gotten caught up in a sticky wicket of state bureaucracy.
—Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 20 June 2024
The situation is a sticky wicket, to use an old-fashioned term from the sport of cricket, for the countless interest groups that depend on money from the budget.
—Dan Walters, The Mercury News, 4 May 2024
In contrast, altering and editing an image can be a much more nuanced process that makes determining what part is from humans a sticky wicket.
—Drew McLellan, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2023
As with all questions of volcanic behaviour, the real sticky wicket is timing.
—Erik Klemetti, Discover Magazine, 13 June 2023
Ant Group are currently on a sticky wicket.
—Prathamesh Mulye, Quartz, 22 Mar. 2021
What is a sticky wicket is when partner is subordinate to the other.
—Jenna Reyes, BostonGlobe.com, 28 Jan. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sticky wicket
Noun
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With the consumer behavior of Millennials and Gen-Z—combined with the rising ethnic population and increasing buying power of Boomers—iconic brands, as well as emerging brands, face a dilemma around who to focus on, how to position themselves and where to invest for the best return on investment.Santhi Ramesh, Forbes, 16 Dec. 2024
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These black eyes on California are critical dilemmas.George Skelton, Los Angeles Times, 15 Dec. 2024
Noun
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The question is whether anyone can genuinely rescue Intel from its current predicament.Tim Bajarin, Forbes, 4 Dec. 2024
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Parents are faced with daily questions, dilemmas, and predicaments.Sari Hitchins, Parents, 29 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Highly acidic foods like pickles and tomatoes will react with the can after an extended period of time, causing both taste and texture changes so pay particularly close attention to expiration dates on these items.Patricia Shannon, Southern Living, 8 Dec. 2024
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Choose from a variety of shapes, including the cherished German-American tradition of the pickle ornament.Roger Sands, Forbes, 6 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Still, with the pitching shored up, Cashman has a whole lot more work to do, with holes at first base and third base and maybe center field.Bill Madden, New York Daily News, 14 Dec. 2024
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According to the suit, Teresa Gonzales was out on a walk when witnesses, who were not named in the suit, reported seeing a woman falling through a repair hole into a sewage line.Fernando Cervantes Jr., USA TODAY, 13 Dec. 2024
Noun
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His massive contract — and its salary cap ramifications — has put the Browns in a bind in terms of improving their roster.Chantz Martin, Fox News, 7 Dec. 2024
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The machinists’ decision to reject a new contract that offered a 25% raise will put the planemaker in a serious bind.Morgan Haefner, Quartz, 16 Sep. 2024
Noun
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Social media algorithms are designed to keep us engaged, often leading us down rabbit holes of content that offers little value yet consumes significant time.Cornelia C. Walther, Forbes, 4 Dec. 2024
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Their clever algorithms caught people’s attention and dragged them quickly into addictive rabbit holes of lies and fakery and manipulation.Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 7 Nov. 2024
Noun
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The Daily Mail moreover published photos which purported to show DeGeneres’s property left in a swamp of flood water.Martha Ross, The Mercury News, 2 Dec. 2024
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On a trek through the forest, Nora’s guide signalled for the group to stop near the bank of a swamp.Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes, 26 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near sticky wicket
Cite this Entry
“Sticky wicket.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sticky%20wicket. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
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