conundrum

Etymology

A word of unknown origin with several variants, gaining popularity for its burlesque imitation of scholastic Latin, as "hocus-pocus" or "panjandrum". If there is more to its origin than a nonce coinage, Anatoly Liberman suggests the best theory is that connecting it with the Conimbricenses, 16C scholastic commentaries on Aristotle by the Jesuits of Coimbra which indulge heavily in arguments relying on multiple significations of words.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, US) IPA^(key): /kəˈnʌn.dɹəm/

• Audio (US)

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Noun

conundrum (plural conundrums or conundra)

1. A difficult question or riddle, especially one using a play on words in the answer.
   • 1816, Jane Austen, Emma, Vol. 1, Ch. 2

     “Why should I understand that, or anything else?” asked the girl. “Don’t bother my head by asking conundrums, I beg of you. Just let me discover myself in my own way.”

2. A difficult choice or decision that must be made.
   • 2004, Martha Stewart, statement read before being sentenced to five months in prison

     And while I am more concerned about the well-being of others than for myself, more hurt for them and for their losses than for my own, more worried for their futures than for the future of Martha Stewart the person, you are faced with a conundrum, a problem of monumental, to me, proportions.

Further reading

• conundrum on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Conundrum in the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica.