problem.
A difficulty that has to be resolved or dealt with.
Meaning & usage
A difficulty that has to be resolved or dealt with.
She's leaving because she faced numerous problems to do with racism.
A difficulty that has to be resolved or dealt with. An addiction, other substance use disorder, or comparable psychological challenge.
I think he has a gambling problem. Lending him money will probably only make it worse.
I think he has a nose candy problem. Lending him money will probably only make it worse.
A question to be answered, schoolwork exercise.
Study hard, but don't overdo it. The problems in the exam won't be difficult to solve.
A puzzling circumstance.
Objection.
You got a problem with that?
Difficulty in accepting or understanding or refusal to accept or understand.
You made your best honest effort; if they judge you harshly, that’s their problem, not yours.
A set of moves required to complete a climb.
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *per-der.? Proto-Indo-European *per-der.? Proto-Indo-European *pér Proto-Indo-European *-o Proto-Indo-European *próder. Ancient Greek πρό (pró) Ancient Greek προ- (pro-) Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH-der. Proto-Hellenic *gʷəlnō Ancient Greek βάλλω (bállō) Ancient Greek προβάλλω (probállō) Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥ Proto-Hellenic *-mə Ancient Greek -μᾰ (-mă) Ancient Greek πρόβλημα (próblēma)bor. Latin problēmabor. Middle French problemebor. Middle English probleme English problem From Middle English probleme, from Middle French probleme, from Latin problēma, from Ancient Greek πρόβλημα (próblēma, “anything thrown forward, hindrance, obstacle, anything projecting, a headland, promontory”), from προβάλλω (probállō, “to throw or lay something in front of someone, to put forward”), from προ- (pro-, “in front of”) + βάλλω (bállō, “to throw, to cast, to hurl”). Doublet of problema.
Of a person or an animal, difficult to train or guide; unruly.
Causing a problem; problematic; troublesome.
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *per-der.? Proto-Indo-European *per-der.? Proto-Indo-European *pér Proto-Indo-European *-o Proto-Indo-European *próder. Ancient Greek πρό (pró) Ancient Greek προ- (pro-) Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH-der. Proto-Hellenic *gʷəlnō Ancient Greek βάλλω (bállō) Ancient Greek προβάλλω (probállō) Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥ Proto-Hellenic *-mə Ancient Greek -μᾰ (-mă) Ancient Greek πρόβλημα (próblēma)bor. Latin problēmabor. Middle French problemebor. Middle English probleme English problem From Middle English probleme, from Middle French probleme, from Latin problēma, from Ancient Greek πρόβλημα (próblēma, “anything thrown forward, hindrance, obstacle, anything projecting, a headland, promontory”), from προβάλλω (probállō, “to throw or lay something in front of someone, to put forward”), from προ- (pro-, “in front of”) + βάλλω (bállō, “to throw, to cast, to hurl”). Doublet of problema.
To problematize.
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *per-der.? Proto-Indo-European *per-der.? Proto-Indo-European *pér Proto-Indo-European *-o Proto-Indo-European *próder. Ancient Greek πρό (pró) Ancient Greek προ- (pro-) Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH-der. Proto-Hellenic *gʷəlnō Ancient Greek βάλλω (bállō) Ancient Greek προβάλλω (probállō) Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥ Proto-Hellenic *-mə Ancient Greek -μᾰ (-mă) Ancient Greek πρόβλημα (próblēma)bor. Latin problēmabor. Middle French problemebor. Middle English probleme English problem From Middle English probleme, from Middle French probleme, from Latin problēma, from Ancient Greek πρόβλημα (próblēma, “anything thrown forward, hindrance, obstacle, anything projecting, a headland, promontory”), from προβάλλω (probállō, “to throw or lay something in front of someone, to put forward”), from προ- (pro-, “in front of”) + βάλλω (bállō, “to throw, to cast, to hurl”). Doublet of problema.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.