expression
between a rock and a hard place; out of the frying pan into the fire
Proverbial expression for a situation where avoiding one danger leads to another, or one is trapped between two threats. The literal image is a tiger at the front gate and a wolf at the back gate.
彼は借金取りから逃げようとしたが、前門の虎、後門の狼で、別の貸主に捕まってしまった。
He tried to escape the debt collector, but it was out of the frying pan into the fire—he got caught by another lender.
転職先を決めずに辞めるのは、前門の虎、後門の狼になりかねない。
Quitting without having another job lined up could easily become a case of jumping out of the frying pan into the fire.
A classical Chinese proverb (前門拒虎，後門進狼) that entered Japanese. The literal meaning is 'a tiger at the front gate, a wolf at the back gate,' used to describe a dilemma where escaping one danger leads to another.