Gordian

American  

[gawr-dee-uhn] / ˈgɔr di ən /

adjective

1. pertaining to Gordius, ancient king of Phrygia, who tied a knot the Gordian knot that, according to prophecy, was to be undone only by the person who was to rule Asia, and that was cut, rather than untied, by Alexander the Great.

2. resembling the Gordian knot in intricacy.

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idioms

1. cut the Gordian knot, to act quickly and decisively in a difficult situation; solve a problem boldly.

Etymology

Origin of Gordian

1555–65; < Latin Gordi ( us ) (< Greek Górdios Gordius) + -an

Example Sentences

It does, however, give “influencers” an infinite amount of material they either don’t understand or can manage to twist into whatever Gordian knot they want.

From Salon

Could the administration try to unravel this Gordian knot by suppressing prices and pushing for easy money?

From Barron's

Could the administration try to unravel this Gordian knot by suppressing prices and pushing for easy money?

From Barron's

If generations of diplomats viewed the post-Soviet challenges of Eastern Europe as a Gordian knot to be painstakingly unraveled, the president envisioned an easy fix: The borders matter less than the business.

From The Wall Street Journal

Shapiro dexterously untangles the Gordian knot of their entwined passions, shared ambitions and business bottom lines.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• arduous
• convoluted
• difficult
• fancy
• hard
• intricate
• knotty
• perplexing
• problematic
• sophisticated
• troublesome