| Thorny trees |
| Thorny shrubs |
| Action that makes bad situations worse, and this puzzle's theme |
| Difficult-choice situations |
| Bad situations |
| Emergency situations |
| Like some bad situations |
| Situations where one person's gain is another's loss |
| Thorny ornamental |
| Bothersome situations |
| Thorny shrubs commonly with yellow flowers |
| Blind situations |
| Like some situations |
| Unruly situations |
| Crucial situations |
| Tournament situations |
| Disordered situations |
| Calamitous situations |
| Tourney situations |
| Chaotic situations |
| Confusing situations |
| Nerve-racking situations |
| Thorny situations |
| Wait-___ (thorny plant) |
| Like weightless situations in space, briefly |
| Dramatic situations |
| Tense court situations |
| Lose-lose situations |
| Traffic situations |
| Solutions for unfair situations? |