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Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers:: catch-22 n - a situation in which a person is frustrated by a paradoxical rule or set of circumstances that preclude any attempt to escape from them
Etymology: 20th Century: from the title of a novel (1961) by the US writer J. Heller (1923–99) Catch-22 /ˈkætʃˌtwɛntiˈtu/USA pronunciation n., pl. Catch-22's, Catch-22s. - a frustrating situation in which one is trapped by contradictory rules or conditions: [countable]You can't get a credit card unless you have a good credit rating. But to get a good credit rating, you need a credit card; it's a Catch-22.[uncountable]Any way you look at it, it's Catch-22.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2024Catch-22 (kach′twen′tē to̅o̅′),USA pronunciation n., pl. Catch-22's, Catch-22s. - a frustrating situation in which one is trapped by contradictory regulations or conditions.
- any illogical or paradoxical problem or situation;
dilemma. - a condition, regulation, etc., preventing the resolution of a problem or situation;
catch.
- from a military regulation in a novel of the same name (1961) by U.south, southern. novelist Joseph Heller (born 1923)
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