A. Types of problems and difficulties
There are many words for different types of difficulties. Chaos is a state of total confusion, where there is no order at all. A disaster is an event which causes great harm or damage. If you are facing a dilemma or are in a dilemma you are in a situation where you have to make a difficult decision between two things.
The earthquake was a dreadful disaster for the
country. The transport system was in chaos for
some time afterwards. The government were
faced with a dilemma: start reconstruction
work at once or wait until the likelihood of
aftershocks had passed.
to be in a fix = be in a difficult situation
to be in a tight corner = be in a situation that is hard to get out of
to be in a muddle = be confused / mixed up
The word challenge puts a positive slant on a problem situation in that it focuses on the fact that it needs great mental or physical effort in order to be done successfully and therefore tests a person’s ability.
B. Specific difficulties
You can be badly affected1 by all sorts of things, from those that are mildly irritating2 to the intensely annoying3.
- 1 things can have a negative impact on you
- 2 slightly annoying
- 3 extremely annoying
- Your plans may be disrupted. [prevented from continuing as intended]
- Negotiations or a building may collapse. [fail because of a lack of support]
- You can be deprived of something you value. [have something taken away from you]
- Your life may lack something that you would like. [not have (enough of) something]
The nouns related to the words in this section are effect, irritant or irritation, annoyance, disruption, collapse, deprivation, heartbreak and lack.
C. Idioms about dealing with problems and difficulties
- to take a back seat [not to do anything; let others act instead] ≠ to take the bull by the horns [act positively to face and attack the problem]
- to stir things up [do/say things that make the situation worse] ≠ to pour oil on troubled waters [do/say things that calm the situation down]
- I can’t face (the thought of) clearing up all this mess today. [don’t want to deal with]
- I thought it would be best just to lay my cards on the table. [state exactly what my position is]
- This has to be done by next week; we must get our act together before it’s too late. [organise ourselves to respond; infml]
- We need a proper investigation to get to the bottom of things. [find the true explanation]
- It’s quite difficult to get people to sit up and take notice. [make them pay attention]
- I’m trying to get a grasp of what’s happening; it’s not easy. [find out / understand]
D. Idioms relating to changes in problem situations
- The tide has turned for us; better days are ahead.
- We can see the light at the end of the tunnel at last. [see that a difficult situation may be ending soon]
- I’m afraid we’ve just come to a dead end with our plans.
- I think I’ve reached a turning point in my career.
- The government and the unions have buried the hatchet for the time being. [made peace / stopped fighting each other]
- All that trouble last year was just swept under the carpet in the end. [ignored / deliberately forgotten, without solving it]
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