Tackling More Tricky Word Choices: Issue vs. Problem
The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation
Tackling More Tricky Word Choices: Issue vs. Problem
Several of our articles to start the year have focused on tricky word choices, ones that may throw us off simply because we might not be aware of or pay attention to their subtleties and differences.
Another pair of tricky, freely swapped words is issue and problem. Most often, we’ll use issue to mean problem, not realizing its main definition intends to convey something else. Let’s take a closer look at these words.
The primary meaning of issue is “a point or matter of discussion, debate, or dispute between two or more parties.” Other relevant definitions include “a matter of public concern” and “a misgiving, objection, or complaint.”
Problem, on the other hand, communicates “a question raised for inquiry, consideration, or solution,” “an intricate unsettled question,” “a source of perplexity, distress, or vexation,” and “difficulty in understanding or accepting.”
Some dictionaries have helped blur the distinction by allowing the concept of problem to trickle into definitions of issue. Within dictionary entries, appearances of problem under meanings of issue range from near the top to much farther down.
For example, the online American Heritage Dictionary introduces problem in its second definition of issue, immediately following the first and more weighted one. Conversely, the online Oxford English Dictionary does not mention problem as related with issue until the sixteenth definition. Merriam-Webster alludes to problem in definition six. Dictionary.com does not introduce the idea of problem at all.
So what, then, do careful writers do when common usage and even dictionaries muddy our mission for precision? We recommend an even greater focus on using issue and problem as we’ve distinguished them here. This will help reinforce the exactness English offers us.
We acknowledge that issue and problem will still be exchanged in spoken communication. At the same time, now that we better understand the difference, we can lead more-accurate usage by keeping their intended primary meanings within our own speech.
Pop Quiz
Choose either issue or problem as it fits by its main definition in each sentence.
1. I think we have a serious (issue / problem) with the balance sheet. The numbers are way off.
2. Do you think he has (an issue / a problem) with his focus during meetings?
3. The main (issue / problem) here is whether we should allow the empty twenty acres west of Route 45 to be rezoned for commercial use.
4. The council will soon discuss the (issue / problem) of a proposed hike in water rates.
Pop Quiz Answers
1. I think we have a serious (issue / problem) with the balance sheet. The numbers are way off.
2. Do you think he has (an issue / a problem) with his focus during meetings?
3. The main (issue / problem) here is whether we should allow the empty twenty acres west of Route 45 to be rezoned for commercial use.
4. The council will soon discuss the (issue / problem) of a proposed hike in water rates.
If the article or the existing discussions do not address a thought or question you have on the subject, please use the "Comment" box at the bottom of this page.
The primary meanings of “issue” & “problem” given here are succinct enough to clarify the distinction between them. They ought to be used as they are meant to be.
I think that you’ve misunderstood the issue. “Issue” is used as a euphemism for “problem” precisely because everyone knows that it is less negative. For example, people say that “He has an issue with his focus” because that sounds less accusatory than saying that “He has a problem with his focus”. Of course one can object to euphemistic usage as much as to careless usage, but one ought to acknowledge that that is what is happening.
We appreciate your observation, which supports what we state in the article. (We do point out that “issue” and “problem” will continue to be synonymous in spoken English.)
You should have said, “Another pair of tricky, freely swapped words are issue and problem.” I’m sorry, but your arguments against this (assuming you have any) just won’t work on me.
This article, like many others, is not an argument to persuade or otherwise change an opinion; rather, it offers observations to help writers continue to be mindful and thoughtful about grammar, style, and word choice.
(Also please note the collective noun pair is the subject of the sentence, and it is singular. Please see the Basic Rule and Rule 1 of Subject-Verb Agreement.)
I am getting so sick of this now in 2019! Everywhere I go online, I keep reading people saying they’re “experiencing issues.” It’s driving me absolutely insane and I don’t know what to do about it!
There is no such thing as “experiencing an issue!” Issues are abstract concepts: you can speak about them, consider them, contemplate them, or deal with them—but you can’t “experience” them!
The attempted solving of the overuse of the word “problem” by substituting the word “issue” had resulted in an entirely new problem.
Everything nowadays is an issue. The “problem” is that newspapers, magazines, and books have issues and people have problems.
I really do not know what the solution to this new problem is, but try using the word “topic” once in a while and then say what you mean.
Use the word “problem” only when it is a problem.
GrammarBook, you are so right! If you’re using the word “issue,” you’ve probably chosen the wrong word. That’s because “issue” has been so misused and overused it now could be best defined as “thing (And “thing” would be the better word choice.)
The problem of “issue” has been growing since the 1990s, when psychologists and psychologists leaned heavily on the word to avoid declaring their patients had “a problem.” For a while, the word became a joke. One of the mobsters on “The Sopranos” TV show sadly explained he was going to “a shrink” because, “I have issues.” It was a funny line. People laughed. But then suddenly the word became the go-to for any kind of “problem.”
Things got worse. “Issue” was being used to mean not just problem. It’s now used to mean cause, effect, detail, factor, even solution! And how many notable personalities have been celebrated for their “championing environmental issues.” What the heck does that mean? These people liked environmental problems? Of course not. They championed environmental causes, environmental solutions, or environmental safeguards. Pick the most helpful word, not that murky, meaningless “issue.”
Stop using the word “issue” unless you’re talking about a political matter for debate (a political issue) or an “issue” of a newspaper (and when does that come up anymore?). Write and speak clearly. The right words are out there.