# "In a pickle"

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-a-pickle/489044>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 11, 2009, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-a-pickle/489044 "2009-03-11T05:28:29Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\
**Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-a-pickle/489044/1 "2009-03-11T05:28:29Z")

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How did a “pickle” come to mean a troublesome situation?

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**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\
**Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-a-pickle/489044/2 "2009-03-11T05:41:22Z")

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Not sure, but [it dates back to the 16th century; Shakespeare uses it at least twice.](http://www.enotes.com/shakespeare-quotes/appendix-faux-in-a-pickle)

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**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\
**Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-a-pickle/489044/3 "2009-03-11T12:17:05Z")

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Here’s what the [word detective](http://www.word-detective.com/021402.html#pickle) says:

> [@](#):
>
> “In a pickle,” meaning “in a disagreeable situation or predicament,” does indeed seem like a mysterious figure of speech, but that’s mainly due to our modern use of the word “pickle.” While today we use “pickle” primarily to mean a pickled cucumber, strictly speaking a “pickle” can be anything preserved in brine, from other vegetables to (yuck) such meat delicacies as pig’s feet. More importantly, “pickle” (from the old Dutch word “pekel,” meaning “brine”) originally referred to the brine or vinegar “pickling” solution itself, and “to be in a pickle” metaphorically conjured up the image of finding oneself submerged in such a stinging, sour bath. “In a pickle” in this “What do I do now?” sense first appeared in the 16th century. The use of “pickle” specifically to mean a pickled cucumber didn’t arise until the 18th century.

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**Author:** ![MarcusF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/67e7ee/32.png) [@MarcusF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MarcusF)\
**Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-a-pickle/489044/4 "2009-03-11T12:47:58Z")

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> [@Khadaji](#):
>
> Here’s what the [word detective](http://www.word-detective.com/021402.html#pickle) says:
> 
> > [@](#):
> >
> > “In a pickle,” meaning “in a disagreeable situation or predicament,” does indeed seem like a mysterious figure of speech, but that’s mainly due to our modern use of the word “pickle.” While today we use “pickle” primarily to mean a pickled cucumber, strictly speaking a “pickle” can be anything preserved in brine, from other vegetables to (yuck) such meat delicacies as pig’s feet. More importantly, “pickle” (from the old Dutch word “pekel,” meaning “brine”) originally referred to the brine or vinegar “pickling” solution itself, and “to be in a pickle” metaphorically conjured up the image of finding oneself submerged in such a stinging, sour bath. “In a pickle” in this “What do I do now?” sense first appeared in the 16th century. The use of “pickle” specifically to mean a pickled cucumber didn’t arise until the 18th century.

Does the dismissive reference to pickled veg mean that America is lost to the delights of [Branston pickle](http://www.britishdelights.com/branston.asp)?

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**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\
**Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-a-pickle/489044/5 "2009-03-11T13:22:26Z")

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Hey, were you watching “Good Eats” last night too? It mentioned Shakespeare as the first usage, but I don’t know how rigourous Alton’s etymology department is.