In a difficult situation

pressed (adjective)

in a difficult situation because you do not have enough time, money, or other things that you need

suffering from unfair and cruel treatment by a more powerful person or government

if a situation is deadlocked, or if people are deadlocked, there is a serious disagreement and neither person or group involved in it is willing to change their opinions or position

stuck (adjective)

unable to solve a problem and continue working

beleaguered (adjective)

having a lot of problems or criticism to deal with

embroiled (adjective)

involved in a difficult situation

worse off (adjective)

in a worse situation than you were before, or than someone else is now

out of your depth ()

in a situation that you cannot deal with because it is too difficult or dangerous

in deep trouble ()

in a very difficult situation

up against something ()

in a very difficult situation, or with a serious problem to deal with

a marked man/woman ()

a man or woman who is in danger because someone wants to hurt or kill them

at/on the receiving end (of something) ()

affected by something unpleasant

at risk ()

in a situation in which something unpleasant or dangerous could happen to you

back to/at square one ()

in the same situation that you were in before you started to do something, with no progress made

battered (adjective)

having experienced a lot of difficulty

be done for (informal)

informal to be likely to be punished, hurt, or killed

behind the eight ball (American)

American in a difficult situation in which people are blaming you or expecting you to take action

caught (adjective)

if you are caught between two opposite feelings or actions, you do not know how to react to something

dead (adjective)

informal in serious trouble

disadvantaged (adjective)

disadvantaged people do not have the same advantages as other people, for example because they do not have much money

distressed (adjective)

mainly Britishold-fashioned suffering great difficulties because of a lack of money, food, or other basic things

downtrodden (adjective)

treated in a cruel or unfair way by someone in a position of power

embattled (adjective)

mainly journalism experiencing a lot of problems and likely to be defeated or destroyed

enmeshed (adjective)

formal involved in a complicated or unpleasant situation that it is difficult to escape from

hamstrung (adjective)

prevented from doing what you want to do

hoist with/by your own petard ()

suffering as a result of your attempt to harm someone else

in a bind (informal)

informal in a difficult situation

in a hole ()

in a difficult situation

in a pickle ()

in a difficult situation

in/at/on the front line ()

in a position, especially in an organization or group, where you are the most likely to be criticized or attacked

in deep doo-doo (informal)

informal in serious trouble

in deep shit/in the shit ()

in trouble

in extremis (adverb)

formal in a very difficult or dangerous situation that needs to be dealt with immediately

in hot water ()

in trouble because of something that you have done

in/into deep water ()

in a difficult or serious situation

in the doghouse (American)

American if you are in the doghouse, someone is angry with you because you have done something wrong

in the eye of the storm ()

in the middle of a difficult situation

in the face of something ()

in a situation where you have to deal with something unpleasant or difficult

in the same boat ()

in the same difficult or unpleasant situation

in the throes of something ()

involved in a difficult or unpleasant situation or activity

knee-deep (adjective)

if you are knee-deep in work or problems, you have a lot of work or problems

mired (adjective)

caught in an unpleasant situation that you cannot easily escape from

on the back foot ()

in a worse situation than other people or groups

on the horns of a dilemma ()

in a situation in which you have to decide between two equally unpleasant choices

on the rack ()

in a difficult situation that you cannot deal with

on thin ice ()

at risk of upsetting or annoying someone

over a barrel ()

if someone has you over a barrel, they know that you are in a difficult situation and that you will have to do what they want

perilously close to (doing) something (mainly literary)

mainly literary at a point at which you nearly do something dangerous or unpleasant

pushed (for time/money) (informal)

informal in difficulty because you do not have enough time or money

riven (adjective)

formal a country or organization that is riven by disagreement or other difficulties is divided by them

(skating) on thin ice ()

doing something dangerous, or something that could have an unpleasant result

stalemated (adjective)

if people or discussions are stalemated, they are unable to make progress

stuck (adjective)

forced to have, use, or deal with someone or something that you do not want

stuck (adjective)

informal in a situation that you do not like but cannot avoid

troubled (adjective)

a troubled place, time, or situation is affected by many problems

underrepresented (adjective)

underrepresented groups do not have enough people with power to speak for them or to help them

underserved (adjective)

not getting enough help or services, especially medical services

under the cosh (British)

Britishinformal experiencing difficulty or criticism

under the gun ()

under a lot of pressure and not certain that you will succeed

up a tree ()

in a difficult or embarrassing situation

up shit creek (without a paddle) ()

in a very difficult situation

up to your neck/ears/eyes in something ()

involved in a difficult situation, or with more work to do than you can deal with

Synonyms and antonyms of In a difficult situation in American Thesaurus