hoofdpijndossier

Language: Dutch · [ˈɦoːftpɛindɔˌʃeː] · Pronunciation: HOAFT-pine-doss-yay

Pronunciation: Marcel coenders · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Meaning

a long-running issue that gives whoever holds it a headache

The story

Hoofdpijn is headache and a dossier is a file: the issue that lands on a minister's desk, has been there for years, and will outlast them. Dutch newspapers use it for anything from airport noise to nitrogen rules. English calls it a hot potato.

The four rounds

Which language is it from?: Dutch
Who ends up with one?: A minister inheriting a stuck issue
Where would you hear it?: The same cabinet item, year after year
What does it mean?: A long-running mess nobody can fix

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