trouble spot
9
3.7
- noun
:
punto problemático
- Relief is coming to a few of New York City's notorious traffic trouble spots.
- trouble spots around the world
- potential trouble spot
- other trouble spots
Examples
-
The localities with the biggest youth bulges are assumed to be the biggest potential trouble spots.
Academic text (2002) -
Numerous and ever-changing trouble spots clamor for the public's attention.
Academic text (1993) -
One less trouble spot for us to worry about.
Fiction book (1991) -
We have to change the style in which we handle these trouble spots.
Blog text (17) -
Ethnic conflict disturbed the peace in one trouble spot after another.
Academic text (1999) -
With this information, scientists could identify trouble spots and intervene before populations crash.
Academic text (2008) -
James Hamilton: The list of oil-producing countries is almost a Who's Who of world trouble spots.
Blog text (25) -
One of the public's best-learned lessons is that America must not intervene in world trouble spots unilaterally.
Academic text (1992) -
The Secretary General's Special Envoy, with his long experience in trouble spots, is treading carefully in this difficult political landscape, working with, rather than against, the US while he tries to gain the trust of Iraqis.
-
The region has become a known trouble spot due to ongoing conflicts and unrest.
Synonyms
13
3.8
An area or situation where people are likely to be hurt
11
5.6
A place where political unrest may lead to violence
10
7.5
A situation where trouble or violence can start suddenly
8
7.2
A situation that causes much trouble and angry reactions
6
8.3
A place or situation likely to become suddenly violent because of tensions
4
5.1
A place where political conflict or violence often happens
Antonyms
How Troubled
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a place where problems occur' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'trouble' (problems/disturbance) with 'spot' (location). This straightforward noun + noun combination follows common compositional patterns found across languages, so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
The phrase trouble spot comes from the image of a small spot on a map or area where trouble keeps happening, a place people mark to watch. So it means 'a place where problems, conflicts, or unrest happen often'.