problem

Pronunciation

• IPA: UK /ˈprɒb.ləm/, US /ˈprɑː.bləm/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English probleme, borrowed from Old French probleme and directly borrowed from Latin problēma,^[2][3][4] from Ancient Greek πρόβλημα (próblēma, “a thing put forward, a question proposed”),^[2][3][5] from προβάλλειν (probállein, “to throw forward, propose”),^[2][5][6] from πρό (pró, “forward”) and βάλλειν (bállein, “to throw”).^[2][7][6] The Greek word also meant a projection or headland, a barrier, and a problem in geometry.^[2][8] It is related to ballistic.^[9][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

A puzzling question, a riddle: before 1382, in the Wycliffe Bible.^[3][10]

Semantic evolution

In the late 14th century a problem was also a question put forward for scholarly discussion.^[3][2][9] It meant “a difficulty” from 1464^[3] or the mid-15th century,^[2] and a proposition in geometry or mathematics from 1570^[3] or the 1560s.^[2] “A doubtful or difficult question” is from 1594.^[3][10] The pattern the — problem for a persistent social difficulty is found from 1882,^[2] problem child by 1916,^[2] and a chronic personal difficulty, as in a drink problem, from 1950.^[10] No problem is dated 1963 by the OED^[10] and 1968 by Etymonline.^[2] Problematical is from 1570 and problematic from 1609.^[3]

Timeline

• before 1382 – a riddle (Wycliffe Bible).^[3]
• before 1387 – a question for scholarly study.^[3]
• 1464 – a difficulty.^[3]
• 1570 – a problem in mathematics, and problematical.^[3]
• 1594 – a doubtful question.^[3][10]
• 1609 – problematic.^[3]
• 1916 – problem child.^[2]
• 1950 – a personal difficulty.^[10]
• 1963 – no problem.^[10]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A question to be considered, solved or answered.
2. A situation, matter or person that causes difficulty or perplexity.
3. (mathematics) A proposition in which something is to be done or found.

Adjective

1. Difficult to deal with or control: a problem child.
2. Dealing with a moral or social problem.

Related words

• problematic
• ballistic
• emblem
• parable
• symbol
• hyperbole

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
4. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (2000), 4th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
6. ^ a b c Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
7. ^ Soanes, Catherine; Stevenson, Angus, eds. (2004), Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 11th ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
9. ^ a b Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
10. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press