lesser of two evils
Preferable awful option
The lesser of two evils is the more acceptable of two bad options—chosen not because it's good, but because it's less harmful than the alternative.
The phrase acknowledges that sometimes all available choices are undesirable: I voted for him as the lesser of two evils.
Often shortened to the lesser evil.
- rock and a hard placeSituation with only bad choices
- choiceAct of selecting
- decisionSettled course of action
- tough callDecision with no clear winner
- compromiseAgreement through mutual sacrifice
no good options · moral dilemma · option · harm reduction · preference · trade-off · selection · utilitarianism · consequentialism · pick · voting booth · cost-benefit analysis · damage control · bite the bullet · predicament · conundrum · quandary · judgment
- decisionschoice, make a decision, choices, yes, no
- catch-22svicious cycle, deadlock, poverty trap, debt spiral, infinite regress
- predicamentspredicament, dilemma, bind, pickle, pinch
lesser of two evilsbest of both worlds
Having two advantages simultaneously
win-win · dream scenario · first choice · no-brainer · cream of the crop
lesser of two evilsembarrassment of riches
Overwhelming surplus of desirable things
spoiled for choice · best of the best · cream of the crop · pick of the litter · win-win situation