doomed if you do, doomed if you don't
- idiom
- Informal
:
estás condenado si lo haces, estás condenado si no lo haces
- Sometimes parenting can feel like you're doomed if you do, doomed if you don't.
Examples
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Politicians often feel doomed if you do, doomed if you don't when faced with controversial issues.
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It's a classic case of being doomed if you do and doomed if you don't.
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No matter what decision I make, I'm doomed if you do, doomed if you don't.
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You're doomed if you do, doomed if you don't!
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In difficult situations, people often feel doomed if you do, doomed if you don't regardless of the choice they make.
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When dealing with health decisions, you can feel doomed if you do, doomed if you don't about any option you choose.
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Choosing the right path in life can sometimes leave you feeling doomed if you do, doomed if you don't.
Synonyms
11
5.3
A situation where every choice leads to a bad result
A situation where any choice leads to trouble or criticism
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
doomed + if + you + do, + doomed + if + you + don't
The phrase is directly compositional: it repeats the adjective 'doomed' with two conditional clauses ('if you do' / 'if you don't'), so a learner who knows 'doomed', 'if', 'do' and basic negation can infer that either choice leads to negative consequences. This syntactic pattern (X if you do, X if you don’t) is transparent and cross-linguistically common, making the overall meaning predictable from the parts.
Etymology
The expression doomed if you do, doomed if you don't creates a picture of someone standing between two paths where choosing either one leads into trouble. So it is used to say you are 'doomed' or in trouble whether you act or not, because there is 'no good choice'.