Quagmire

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈkwæɡ.maɪə(ɹ)/

Definitions

1. A soft area of wet, muddy land that is easy to get stuck in ; a complicated or troubling situation that is hard to escape from
2. Ground saturated with water making it unstable or swampy ; a problematic or tricky circumstance that causes distress or confusion
3. A marshy or boggy patch of terrain where one can easily become immobilized ; an awkward or dangerous condition that is challenging to resolve

Etymology: Ground that swallows your boots is one thing, but "quagmire" has spent centuries drifting from the literal bog to the metaphorical trap. It was recorded in English in 1579, when it meant a patch of soft, waterlogged land. The likeliest building blocks are "quag," a word for a quaking bog, and "mire," mud, so the name describes exactly what it is: a quaking mud-pit. The word has a rival explanation. It may be a variant of the earlier "quakemire," from "quake" and "mire," which would make the sense of trembling ground even more direct. Either way, the notion of earth that gives way underfoot is built into the form. The figurative sense, a perilous or confusing situation that is hard to escape, arrived much later, first recorded in 1775. The bog had become a picture of a predicament: the more you struggle, the deeper you sink.

Synonyms: bog, swamp, morass, mire, slough

Antonyms: dry land, solid ground, upland, high ground, firm land