rock and a hard place
Two bad options
A rock and a hard place describes a situation where someone faces two equally undesirable options—trapped between dangers with no good escape.
The full idiom is caught between a rock and a hard place or stuck between a rock and a hard place: She was between a rock and a hard place—take the pay cut or lose her job entirely.
- dilemmaForced choice between undesirables
- stuckUnable to move
- trappedUnable to escape
- squeezeFirm bilateral compression
- cornerMeeting point of edges
no win situation · backed into a corner · bind · catch-22 · predicament · pickle · jam · tight spot · impossible choice · lesser of two evils · between · Hobson's choice · pressure · crushed · boxed in · screwed · desperate · impossible
rock and a hard placefree rein
Unrestricted freedom to act
carte blanche · freedom of choice · flexibility · embarrassment of riches · open road
rock and a hard placeeasy street
State of financial security
lap of luxury · comfort zone · safe harbor · bed of roses · smooth sailing
rock and a hard placewin-win situation
Outcome benefiting all parties
win-win · best of both worlds · embarrassment of riches · golden opportunity · sweet spot
rocked, rocking, rockier, rockiest, harder, hardest, harden, hardened, hardening