Difference between question and problem

Question

0Hi, can anyone tell me what the differences are between question and problem, such as in meanings and usages ? Or, they are interchangable? I don't find any explanation  for this in the dictionaries. Thank you for your kindly help.02br02br00roy02br02br00p.s. I searched the website, but couldn't find if such a question has been asked or not. If yes, please kindly let me know the link. Thank you.0-

Clive · Accepted Answer

0Hi,02br
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00It's better if you give us some examples of sentences that you need help with, so that we can clearly see what your difficulty is.02br
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00Perhaps you mean this kind of thing?02br
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01font00There is a 01b00question 02b00about his loyalty to the company.02font00 This suggests we want to know. However, his possible lack of loyalty may not yet have caused any problems. We just want to know.02br
02br
01font00There is a01b00 problem02b00 about his loyalty to the company.02font00 Some problem has occured.02br
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00Often, in practice, the 2 words are interchanged in this kind of context.02br
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00Best wishes, Clive0-

Pchuang · Answer

0 a question is what you raise to find answers.02br
00a problem is what you encounter as difficulties.02br
02br
00you may say "I have problems with your service", meaning your are not happy with their service and you want to make a complaint.02br
02br
00if you say "I have a question about your service", meaning you want some information regarding their service. 0-

Simplebeing · Answer

0Hi,02br
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00I wonder if there are any reference books providing such subtle differences in meaning for these 'synonyms' since sometimes most dictionaries don't have further explanation. Or, by other what channels to get this kind of information ? Thank you. 0-

Clive · Answer

0Hi,02br
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00Welcome to the Forum.02br
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00In general terms, my advice is simply to read a lot of English. There is no quick shortcut to learning such things.02br
02br
00Best wishes, Clive0-

Marius Hancu · Answer

0 01blockquote

01cite10Simplebeing12cite10I wonder if there are any reference books providing such subtle differences in meaning for these 'synonyms' since sometimes most dictionaries don't have further explanation. Or, by other what channels to get this kind of information ? Thank you <>12blockquote

10I'd suggest buying: 02br
02br
00 Merriam Webster's Dictionary of Synonyms: A Dictionary of02br
00 Discriminated Synonyms With Antonyms and Analogous and Contrasted02br
00 Words02br
02br
00 and/or getting a subscription ($30 or thereabouts/year) to:02br
02br
05002br
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00 which has a pretty strong synonym section with many words, e.g.:02br
02br
00 -----02br
01b00synonyms02b00 01a00PROBLEM02a00, 01a00PUZZLE02a00, 01a00ENIGMA02a00, 01a00RIDDLE02a00, 01a00CONUNDRUM02a00: mystery refers to a matter inexplicable, one that defies attempts at explanation, or to something kept secret but intriguing and compelling speculation <this 01i00mystery 02i00of growth of life -- Richard Jefferies> <the veil of 01i00mystery 02i00that shrouds human sleep -- Webb Garrison> <the disappearance of the Erebus and Terror in the Arctic was one of the great mid-Victorian 01i00mysteries02i00 -- 01i00Times Literary Supplement02i00> 01a00PROBLEM02a00, more commonplace in its suggestions, refers to any question calling for solution or answer or to any factor causing perplexity and concern <the 01i00problem 02i00of spontaneous generation -- J.B.Conant> <with the shipping 01i00problem 02i00resolved by the allocation of ships to France -- 01i00Current Biography02i00> <the withdrawn child or adolescent is, in the long run, more likely to become a serious psychological 01i00problem 02i00than is the mildly aggressive child -- Paul Woodring> 01a00PUZZLE 02a00applies to any problem notably baffling and challenging one's ingenuity or skill <there are few things in the world so difficult to explain as real change; it appears to me that most scientists are far from realising the complexity of this metaphysical 01i00puzzle02i00 -- W.R.Inge> 01a00ENIGMA 02a00applies to whatever is quite obscure or inscrutable and challenges one's ingenuity for an answer <he became an 01i00enigma. 02i00One side or the other of his nature was perfectly comprehensible; but both sides together were bewildering -- Jack London> <just what his objectives are is an 01i00enigma, 02i00for he has been extremely adept in refusing to commit himself too far -- Vance Johnson> 01a00RIDDLE 02a00indicates a question or problem involving paradox or contradictions, often light, and usually proposed for solution as an indication of wit or intellect <I've got a brand-new 01i00riddle 02i00for you ... what's the difference between a cat and a comma? ... a comma's a pause at the end of a clause, and a cat's got claws at the end of its paws -- J.W.Ellison b.1929> 01a00CONUNDRUM 02a00may apply to punning riddles or to unsolvable problems inviting speculation <Octavius -- he was not for nothing the scion of banking stock -- looked beyond the political 01i00conundrum 02i00to the economic problems of the land -- John Buchan> 02br
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05102br
00 -------------02br
0240241

Birmingham · Answer

0 A question is anything you ask; a problem is anything you struggle with. 0-

Feebs11 · Answer

0 A question is something you ask, hoping for an answer02br
00A problem is something for which you seek a solution02br
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00There are some people who say "There are no problems, only solutions", meaning that nothing is impossible to resolve.0-

Birmingham · Answer

0 "A question is something you ask, hoping for an answer"02br
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00Not always true. I may ask a retorical question in which case I may not hope for an answer.02br
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00"A problem is something for which you seek a solution"02br
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00Replace 'you' with 'one'. It may be someone else's problem in which case I may not be seeking a solution, but they certainly will be.02br
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00"There are some people who say "There are no problems, only solutions", meaning that nothing is impossible to resolve."02br
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00There sure are problems, and each problem has endless solutions. 0-

Feebs11 · Answer

0 01font00There sure are problems, and each problem has endless solutions.02font02br
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01b00Ah, but it is the solutions that matter, not the problems. It's all a matter of whether you are negative or positive in your reading of the situation. The negative is that there is a problem, the positive is that there is a solution.02b0-

Anonymous · Answer

0 01blockquote

01cite10Pchuang12cite10a question is what you raise to find answers. a problem is what you encounter as difficulties. you may say "I have problems with your service", meaning your are not happy with their service and you want to make a complaint. if you say "I have a question about your service", meaning you want some information regarding their service.12blockquote

10What about "I would like to pick your brains on some English grammatical questions." and "I would like to pick your brains on some English grammatical problems." ?02br
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00Are they interchangeble in these two sentence? Or, they have different points of view to emphasize? Which sentence is proper? 0-

Difference between question and problem

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