A dangerous or distressing predicament.

Roget 704: difficulty; hardness etc. adj.; impracticability etc. (impossibility) 471; tough work, hard work, uphill work; hard task, Herculean task, Augean task^†; task of Sisyphus, Sisyphean labor, tough job, teaser, rasper^†, dead lift.    dilemma, embarrassment; deadlock; perplexity etc. (uncertainty) 475; intricacy; entanglement, complexity etc. 59; cross fire; awkwardness, delicacy, ticklish card to play, knot, Gordian knot, dignus vindice nodus [Lat.], net, meshes, maze; coil etc. (convolution) 248; crooked path; involvement.    nice point, delicate point, subtle point, knotty point; vexed question, vexata quaestio [Lat.], poser; puzzle etc. (riddle) 533; paradox; hard nut to crack, nut to crack; bone to pick, crux, pons asinorum [Lat.], where the shoe pinches.    nonplus, quandary, strait, pass, pinch, pretty pass, stress, brunt; critical situation, crisis; trial, rub, emergency, exigency, scramble.    scrape, hobble, slough, quagmire, hot water, hornet's nest; sea of troubles, peck of troubles; pretty kettle of fish; pickle, stew, imbroglio, mess, ado; false position.    set fast, stand, standstill; deadlock, dead set.    fix, horns of a dilemma, cul de sac [Fr.]; hitch; stumbling block etc. (hindrance) 706.    [difficult person] crab; curmudgeon.    ... show more

Roget 830: painfulness etc. adj.; trouble, care etc. (pain) 828; trial; affliction, infliction; blow, stroke, burden, load, curse; bitter pill, bitter draught; waters of bitterness.    annoyance, grievance, nuisance, vexation, mortification, sickener^†; bore, bother, pother, hot water, sea of troubles" [Hamlet], hornet's nest, plague, pest.    cancer, ulcer, sting, thorn; canker etc. (bane) 663; scorpion etc. (evil doer) 913; dagger etc. (arms) 727; scourge etc. (instrument of punishment) 975; carking care, canker worm of care.    mishap, misfortune etc. (adversity) 735; desagrement [Fr.], esclandre [Fr.], rub.    source of irritation, source of annoyance; wound, open sore; sore subject, skeleton in the closet; thorn in the flesh, thorn in one's side; where the shoe pinches, gall and wormwood.    sorry sight, heavy news, provocation; affront etc. 929; head and front of one's offending" [Othello]. infestation, molestation; malignity etc. (malevolence) 907.    ... show more

Dutch: warm water