in a situation in which you have to make a choice between things that are equally unpleasant进退两难；左右为难
The medical profession’s eagerness for scientific advance had impaled it on the horns of a dilemma, forcing an unnatural choice between science and morality.医学界对科学进步的渴望使其陷入了困境，迫使他们在科学与道德之间做出不自然的选择。
The dire economic situation had placed the prime minister on the horns of a dilemma.严峻的经济形势使首相陷入进退两难的境地。