kettle of fish

• kiddle of fish, kittle of fish, keddle of fish

From kettle, a variant of kiddle, a weir or fence of stakes in a stream used to catch fish.

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kettle of fish (plural kettles of fish)

1. (idiomatic) An awkward situation.

   Synonyms: can of worms, predicament; see also Thesaurus:difficult situation

   • 2004, Ellen Raskin, chapter 13, in The Westing Game:

     "That's a fine kettle of fish," he exclaimed, then turned to his dinner companion. "Fine kettle of fish. I'm so hungry even that sounds good, and from the looks of this menu that's probably what I'll get."

2. (idiomatic) A situation recognized as different from or as an alternative to some other situation.

   Synonyms: ball game, horse of a different color, pair of shoes

   That is another kettle of fish entirely.