XY problem

noun

A communication problem where a person seeking help (for example, from a computing helpdesk) provides misleadingly incomplete information about the source of the problem and thus receives inaccurate or unhelpful suggestions about how to fix it.

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Meanings

nounXY problem (plural XY problems)

plural XY problems

  1. A communication problem where a person seeking help (for example, from a computing helpdesk) provides misleadingly incomplete information about the source of the problem and thus receives inaccurate or unhelpful suggestions about how to fix it.
Cite this entry
APA

XY problem. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/XY%20problem

MLA

“XY problem.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/XY%20problem. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “XY problem,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/XY%20problem.

Source: XY problem on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.