societal trap
- noun
- Breaking free from a societal trap often requires challenging long-standing norms and expectations.
Examples
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She realized the career path she chose was a societal trap shaped more by others than by her own desires.
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She believes that marriage can sometimes become a societal trap.
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Many people find themselves stuck in a societal trap that prevents them from pursuing their true passions.
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Many people feel caught in a societal trap.
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Breaking free from a societal trap often requires challenging long-standing norms that restrict individual choices.
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Many individuals feel constrained by a societal trap that limits their ability to follow their true passions.
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She discovered that her career was a societal trap influenced more by societal expectations than by her personal goals.
Synonyms
7
7.5
A situation that greatly limits freedom and progress
A feeling of being held back by what other people expect you to do
A situation where people feel trapped by what others think they should do
Antonyms
How Restrictive
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase 'societal trap' is directly interpretable as a 'trap' caused by or arising from society because 'societal' specifies the social source and 'trap' commonly has a figurative meaning of a restricting situation. This metaphorical but transparent composition follows normal adjective + noun logic and is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would very likely infer the intended meaning.
Etymology
Societal trap mixes societal, which comes from 'society', and trap, which is a device that catches animals. One way to imagine it is rules and expectations acting like a net that holds a person, so the phrase means 'a situation where social expectations limit someone's freedom to choose'.