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10 Language-to-English DictionariesEthical conundrum
/ˈɛθ.ɪ.kəl kənˈʌn.drəm/Comprehensive Definitions & Senses
2 senses- 1
A difficult problem or dilemma involving a conflict of moral imperatives, where no available course of action resolves the issue satisfactorily.
"The autonomous vehicle's programming presented developers with a severe ethical conundrum regarding whom to protect in an unavoidable accident." - 2
A complex question or situation in professional or personal life that forces a difficult choice between competing ethical values.
"Whistleblowing often plunges employees into a deep ethical conundrum between loyalty to their company and duty to the public."
Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum
Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology
The term combines 'ethical'—derived from the Ancient Greek 'ethikos' (pertaining to character or custom) via Latin—with 'conundrum', a 16th-century university slang word of uncertain origin originally meaning a pun or riddle. Over time, 'conundrum' shifted to describe a perplexing problem or difficult dilemma, making 'ethical conundrum' a modern compound denoting a complex moral puzzle.
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10 Global Lexicons: How "Ethical conundrum" is said worldwide
Click any language below to open its dedicated Language to English dictionary page with native script & transliteration
délire éthique
Transliteration: dé-lile é-tik
Script: dilemme éthique
"Cette situation a créé un véritable dilemme éthique pour le conseil d'administration."
ethisches Dilemma
Transliteration: e-tɪʃəs dɪˈlɛma
"Die Entscheidung stellte das Gremium vor ein schwieriges ethisches Dilemma."
dilemma etico
Transliteration: di-ˈlɛm.ma ˈɛ.ti.ko
"Il medico si trovò di fronte a un complesso dilemma etico."
dilema ético
Transliteration: di-ˈle-ma ˈe-ti-ko
"El caso planteó un profundo dilema ético para los investigadores."
dilema ético
Transliteration: dji-ˈle-mɐ ˈɛ-ti-ku
"A decisão gerou um dilema ético considerável na empresa."
नैतिक दुविधा
Transliteration: naitik duvidha
"इस फैसले ने एक गंभीर नैतिक दुविधा पैदा कर दी है।"
伦理困境
Transliteration: lúnlǐ kùnjìng
"这项新技术给医学界带来了巨大的伦理困境。"
윤리적 딜레마
Transliteration: yunlijeok dillema
"그는 복잡한 윤리적 딜레마에 직면했다."
倫理的ジレンマ
Transliteration: rinriteki jirenma
"その研究は深刻な倫理的ジレンマを引き起こした。"
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