catch-22
noun
[ katʃtwɛntɪˈtuː ]
• a dilemma or difficult circumstance from which there is no escape because of mutually conflicting or dependent conditions.
• "a catch-22 situation"
Origin:
1960s: title of a novel by Joseph Heller (1961), in which the main character feigns madness in order to avoid dangerous combat missions, but his desire to avoid them is taken to prove his sanity.
