Whenever someone wants to explain their problems to you, they all begin with the refrain, “it’s complicated” in chagrin, to set the expectation of a long explanation, or maybe just to gather their thoughts. The phrase has become so ubiquitous, it can convey almost anything; however, the reality is, it’s not complicated; there’s a logical solution to every problem, no matter how involved things are, but that almost always means someone wins and someone loses, making “it's complicated” a catchall for self interest, irrationally & chance.

In popular culture dialect, “it’s complicated” has become a euphemism for a failed relationship, perhaps even other love interests are involved. Often “it’s complicated” is used to end an uncomfortable conversation; once the phrase is uttered, that’s a clue the speaker doesn’t want to talk about something anymore. “It’s complicated” is also a so-called, weasel-word; something somebody says so that they don’t have to explain themselves when a problem is clearly their responsibility. Actually, if “it’s complicated” didn’t exist, some other term would need to take its place because truth & honesty aren’t always what they’re cracked up to be; I’d explain why but it’s complicated.