How to Use catch-22 in a Sentence

catch-22

noun
Definition of catch-22next
Synonyms for catch-22next
  • For tourists obsessed with beating the crowds, Covid-19 is a catch-22.
    — Laura Mallonee, Wired, 12 Apr. 2020
  • Makowski said that victims will be caught in a catch-22.
    — Christina Hall, Detroit Free Press, 3 Dec. 2019
  • Nichols, the mother of four, described a catch-22 faced by low-income workers in the area.
    — Jonnelle Marte, Washington Post, 13 Aug. 2019
  • With new freedoms came, of course, new rules and regulations — and a sort of catch-22 for High Times.
    — Avi Selk, Washington Post, 19 Apr. 2018
  • At its inception, though, production of NIO’s first car faces a bit of a catch-22.
    — Sean O'Kane, The Verge, 19 Aug. 2018
  • The unrelenting catch-22 of Moren’s job is that a program never stands still.
    — Zach Osterman, Indianapolis Star, 5 Mar. 2020
  • While new sunscreen formulas have been available for over a decade in other countries, Andrews says that the FDA has left the public with a catch-22.
    — Rachel Nussbaum, Glamour, 15 May 2018
  • The Catch-22 is that the guarantees gave drillers the security to boost output, undercutting the rally.
    — Alex Nussbaum, Bloomberg.com, 12 May 2017
  • Thus, Brussels faces a catch-22: Without coronabonds, populism may overwhelm the south; with coronabonds, populism may rise in the north.
    — Peter Rough, National Review, 22 Apr. 2020
  • Focusing on fireworks can sometimes present a catch-22.
    — AL.com, 3 July 2017
  • For decades, franchise employees who wished to bargain collectively were caught in a catch-22.
    — Mark Joseph Stern, Slate Magazine, 19 Dec. 2017
  • Interventions that target trust could therefore be part of a solution to the catch-22 of loneliness.
    — Marta Zaraska, Quanta Magazine, 28 Feb. 2023
  • If anything, Kennedy gave voice to the punishing catch-22 that has kept women from the helm of Hollywood's largest, most lucrative properties for, well, the entire history of the art form.
    — Adam B. Vary, chicagotribune.com, 10 Dec. 2019
  • In the debut episode of goop's new podcast, The Beauty Closet, Paltrow spoke openly about how being celebrated for her appearance has been something of a catch-22.
    — Lauren Valenti, Vogue, 26 July 2019
  • In the meantime, North American paleontologists have been caught in a catch-22.
    — Michael Greshko, National Geographic, 10 Sep. 2019
  • Traveling the distance necessary to reach one often requires a car—a catch-22 for those without licenses.
    — Andrew Cockburn, Harper's magazine, 6 Jan. 2020
  • Consumers will face a catch-22: Click and risk a virus or a scam, or don’t click and miss potentially legitimate information about why a debt collector is going after you and how to dispute the debt.
    — David Vladeck, WIRED, 23 Aug. 2019
  • In retrospect, an exposition-heavy and tonally iffy first season is a bit of a catch-22 for a show like Buffy; its brilliance really did require a depth that could only be created over time.
    — Devon Maloney, VanityFair.com, 10 Mar. 2017
  • For years, Oregon has found itself in a Catch-22 with in-state recruiting - elite enough that only a few local kids each year fit its profile, but not so good as to ignore the state altogether, alienating high school programs in the process.
    — Andrew Nemec, OregonLive.com, 7 June 2017
  • City’s catch-22 Hiring for mental health professionals is a major issue in San Francisco, where the cost of living is soaring but salaries for mental health care workers are stagnant.
    — Dominic Fracassa, SFChronicle.com, 15 Oct. 2019
  • There's a catch-22 of brutal absurdity regarding af Klint.
    — Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Apr. 2020
  • If, as Klein suggests more soundly, addressing those tensions requires a drastic program of democratic reforms, then the true remedy for polarization is a bit of a catch-22.
    — Osita Nwanevu, The New Republic, 19 May 2020
  • This situation could develop into something of a catch-22 for Newcastle, with Benitez reportedly holding off on signing a new deal until Ashley agrees to give him the money to sign players.
    — SI.com, 7 June 2018
  • It’s well-documented that millennials crave authenticity in politics — even though that standard can be a catch-22 for women.
    — Rebecca Nelson, Cosmopolitan, 21 Feb. 2018

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'catch-22.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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