nodus

American  

[noh-duhs] / ˈnoʊ dəs /

noun

plural

nodi

1. a difficult or intricate point, situation, plot, etc.

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nodus British  

/ ˈnəʊdəs /

noun

1. a problematic idea, situation, etc

2. another word for node

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Etymology

Origin of nodus

1350–1400; Middle English: knot in the flesh < Latin nōdus knot

Explanation

A nodus is a knotty problem or a difficult situation to resolve. The nodus of something is where different things or aspects intersect, making things complicated. In drama, the nodus is the point in a plot where the various threads of a story become entangled, leading up to the climax, after which the denouement, or "untying" of the entanglement, occurs. The famous Latin phrase dignus vindice nodus means "a knot worthy of a deliverer" — meaning a plot complication so difficult and complex that only a "god from the machine" (deus ex machina) could solve it. Historically, the word nodus has been used in fields including botany, medicine, and astronomy, to describe points where different things converge.

Example Sentences

There is a nodus here needing a god to solve it.

From Early Bardic Literature, Ireland. by O'Grady, Standish

The Logia hypothesis in fact carries us at once into the very nodus of Synoptic criticism, and, in the present state of the question, must be regarded as still some way from being established.

From The Gospels in the Second Century An Examination of the Critical Part of a Work Entitled 'Supernatural Religion' by Sanday, William

In Southern Europe, the Chestnut is a staple article of food, The title "nut" signifies a hard round lump, from nodus, a knot.

From Herbal Simples Approved for Modern Uses of Cure by Fernie, William Thomas

"What Horace says":—         Nec deus intersit nisi dignus vindice nodus         Inciderit.

From The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 6 Letters 1821-1842 by Lamb, Mary

But this suggestion can scarcely be taken as more than an elaborate confession of inability to solve the nodus.

From Early Britain—Roman Britain by Conybeare, Edward