three-pipe problem

noun

A particularly complex or challenging problem or puzzle.

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Meanings

nounthree-pipe problem (plural three-pipe problems)

plural three-pipe problems

  1. A particularly complex or challenging problem or puzzle.

Origin

From the Sherlock Holmes stories of Arthur Conan Doyle, in which the detective would smoke one or more pipes while pondering the solution to a mystery.

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Cite this entry
APA

three-pipe problem. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/three-pipe%20problem

MLA

“three-pipe problem.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/three-pipe%20problem. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “three-pipe problem,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/three-pipe%20problem.

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