lesser of two evils

Idioms  

1. The somewhat less unpleasant of two poor choices. For example, I'd rather stay home and miss the picnic altogether than run into those nasty people—it's the lesser of two evils. This expression was already a proverb in ancient Greek and appeared in English by the late 1300s. Chaucer used it in Troilus and Cressida.

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Example Sentences

A wary Tinseltown reluctantly lined up behind Netflix as the lesser of two evils, only to watch Paramount keep raising its bid until the streamer walked away.

From Barron's • Jun. 12, 2026

But then neither is Kate; she has a good enough moral sense to pass as a hero, but the exquisite tension of “The Diplomat” is almost always between the lesser of two evils.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 11, 2025

"So it's a question of the lesser of two evils – a tough choice here."

From Salon • May 8, 2023

She said she had felt that was "the lesser of two evils" and that she had been scared because she did not know what he could do.

From BBC • Aug. 18, 2022

In the end, we had no option but to choose between the lesser of two evils, and opt for a diminished education.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela