HomeServicesBlogDictionariesContactSpanish Course
← Back to search

Meaning of sword of Damocles | Babel Free

Noun CEFR C1
ˈsɔɹd əv ˈdæməkliz

Definitions

A thing or situation which causes a prolonged state of impending doom or misfortune.

Equivalents

Examples

Every man, woman and child lives under a nuclear sword of Damocles hanging by the slenderest of threads, capable of being cut at any moment by accident, or miscalculation or by madness. The weapons of war must be abolished before they abolish us.”
“At some point the Sword of Damocles which hangs over all our railway operations will fall with catastrophic impact, just as it did at Hatfield in 2000.”

CEFR level

C1
Advanced
This word is part of the CEFR C1 vocabulary — advanced level.
See all C1 English words →

See also

Learn this word in context

See sword of Damocles used in real conversations inside our free language course.

Start Free Course

Know this word better than we do? Language is a living thing — help us keep it growing. Collaborate with Babel Free