vicious circle
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vicious circle
A situation that seems to have no way out, in which one problem causes a consequence that in turn makes the original problem worse.
Armut und mangelnde Bildung bilden oft einen Teufelskreis, aus dem es schwer ist auszubrechen.
Poverty and lack of education often form a vicious circle that is hard to break out of.
The word is a figurative compound made up of 'Teufel' (devil) and 'Kreis' (circle). It describes a situation so negative and hopeless that it seems as if it had been created by the devil himself.
Er erkannte, dass seine Schulden und seine Arbeitslosigkeit ein Teufelskreis waren.
He realized that his debts and his unemployment were a vicious circle.
To describe escaping from this situation, active verbs such as 'durchbrechen' (to break), 'ausbrechen' (to break out), or 'entkommen' (to escape) are often used.
Mit professioneller Hilfe konnte sie den Teufelskreis der Sucht durchbrechen.
With professional help, she was able to break the vicious circle of addiction.
To express that someone is in this situation, the preposition 'in' is used with the dative. Typical phrases are 'in einem Teufelskreis stecken' (to be stuck in a vicious circle), 'sich in einem Teufelskreis befinden' (to be in a vicious circle), or 'in einem Teufelskreis gefangen sein' (to be trapped in a vicious circle).
Viele junge Leute stecken in dem Teufelskreis aus befristeten Jobs und finanzieller Unsicherheit.
Many young people are stuck in the vicious circle of temporary jobs and financial insecurity.
