In a pickle
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Also,
in a pickle or spot. In a difficult or embarrassing situation, in a dilemma. For example, I was really in a fix when I missed the plane, or Lost and out of gas--how did we get in such a pickle? or John had lost all his money in the crap game--now he was in a spot. The first of these colloquial usages dates from the early 1800s;
pickle in the sense of a mess or quandary, sometimes put as
in a pretty pickle, dates from the 1500s;
spot, also put as
in a bad spot or tough spot, dates from the early 1900s. Also see
in a bind; in deep, def. 2; in the soup; in trouble; on the spot.
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American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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