/ ˈlɪmbəʊ; NAmE -boʊ/ noun
1.
[ C ] a West Indian dance in which you lean backwards and go under a bar which is made lower each time you go under it
2.
[ U , sing. ] a situation in which you are not certain what to do next, cannot take action, etc., especially because you are waiting for sb else to make a decision :
the limbo of the stateless person
His life seemed stuck in limbo ; he could not go forward and he could not go back.
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WORD ORIGIN
sense 2 late Middle English : from the medieval Latin phrase in limbo , from limbus hem, border, limbo.
sense 1 1950s: from limber .