1.
muddy swamp, bog
A literal swamp or marsh filled with deep mud.
泥沼にはまった。
I got stuck in the mud.
雨で道が泥沼のようになった。
The rain turned the road into a muddy swamp.
大雨の後、田んぼが泥沼と化して歩けなかった。
After the heavy rain, the rice paddies turned into a bog and were impassable.
2.
quagmire, morass, hopeless situation
A situation that is difficult to escape from and keeps getting worse, like being stuck in mud.
交渉は泥沼に入った。
The negotiations have become a quagmire.
離婚裁判が泥沼化している。
The divorce trial has turned into a drawn-out mess.
借金の泥沼から抜け出せなくなった。
I couldn't escape the quagmire of debt.
USAGE:
Sense 2 is more common in everyday usage. The figurative meaning emphasizes a situation that worsens the more you struggle, mirroring the experience of sinking deeper into actual mud. Often used with 化する (泥沼化) to describe something becoming a quagmire.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 泥沼にはまる: to get stuck in a quagmire
- 泥沼化する: to turn into a quagmire
- 泥沼の戦い: prolonged struggle
- 泥沼から抜け出す: to escape a quagmire