Etymology Explorer › German

Where does “Dilemma” come from?

Dilemma (German) comes from Latin dilēmma, from Ancient Greek δίλημμα, from Ancient Greek λῆμμα, from Ancient Greek λαμβάνω, from Proto-Hellenic hlagʷ-, from Proto-Indo-European (s)leh₂gʷ- — to seize, take; to take, seize.

Dilemma (German): dilemma, predicament, quandary, conundrum,...

Definitions

  1. dilemma, predicament, quandary, conundrum,...

Ancestry of “Dilemma”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latindilēmma—
2Ancient Greekδίλημμαa conclusion from two premises
3Ancient Greekλῆμμαgain, income; premise, assumption
4Ancient GreekλαμβάνωI take; I receive, get; I take hold of
5Proto-Hellenichlagʷ-—
6Proto-Indo-European(s)leh₂gʷ-to seize, take; to take, seize

Words derived from “Dilemma”

  • dilemmatisch
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)leh₂gʷ- →