sword of Damocles

noun

1. any situation threatening imminent harm or disaster.

Sword of Damocles

noun

1. a closely impending disaster

Word History and Origins

Origin of sword of Damocles¹

First recorded in 1810–20

Word History and Origins

Origin of sword of Damocles¹

see Damocles

Idioms and Phrases

Also, Damocles' sword . Impending disaster, as in The likelihood of lay-offs has been a sword of Damocles over the department for months . This expression alludes to the legend of Damocles, a servile courtier to King Dionysius I of Syracuse. The king, weary of Damocles' obsequious flattery, invited him to a banquet and seated him under a sword hung by a single hair, so as to point out to him the precariousness of his position. The idiom was first recorded in 1747. The same story gave rise to the expression hang by a thread .

Example Sentences

The sword of Damocles hasn't deterred Gaetz's allies from hyping him up for a return to Congress as a House member, as a senato or for a Trump administration post that doesn't require Senate approval.

From Salon

By that point, the TV veteran had been unemployed for more than six months, and his children’s private school tuitions were looming over him like the sword of Damocles.

From Los Angeles Times

They add, “the board should recognize the influence of the sword of Damocles hanging over shareholder heads: the outcome of any stockholder vote could well be seriously distorted by Musk’s looming threat.”

From Los Angeles Times

He said Mr Sunak was "so diminished" that his "entire focus is on stopping his MPs holding the sword of Damocles above his head, perhaps even literally".

From BBC

Mr. Thierer said implicit threats of regulation represent a “sword of Damocles” approach to tech regulation, an approach previously used as the dominant form of indirect regulation in other tech sectors, including telecommunications.

From Washington Times