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square the circle

   Also found in: Encyclopedia, Wikipedia 0.06 sec.
square the circle
to find a good solution to a problem when that seems impossible, especially because the people involved have very different needs or opinions about it Few poor countries can afford to look after their works of art properly, but neglect is unwise if you want to attract tourists. Thailand is attempting to square the circle.
See also: circle, square

square the circle
to solve an unusually difficult problem To get both sides to agree to anything at all meant we had to square the circle.
Related vocabulary: have it both ways
Etymology: from the problem in geometry (a branch of mathematics) of constructing a square that is equal in area to a circle
See also: circle, square


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