a poisoned chalice
Meaning: Something that seems attractive but brings trouble to whoever accepts it.
Language: English
Literally: (Already vivid in English)
Example: “Taking over the failing club is a poisoned chalice.”
Category: Food & Drink
Origin: From Shakespeare's Macbeth (around 1606): "this even-handed justice / Commends the ingredients of our poison'd chalice / To our own lips." The modern sense became common in British English in the late 20th century.
Equivalents in other languages
- French: Une tunique de Nessus — literally: A tunic of Nessus
More idioms — Food & Drink
- think the moon is made of green cheese — To be very gullible.
- grab a bite — To eat something quickly.
- work for peanuts — To work for very little pay.
- small potatoes — Something unimportant or trivial.
- not for all the tea in China — Under no circumstances.
- a hard nut to crack — A difficult problem, or a person who is hard to deal with.
More English idioms
- at the top of one's lungs — As loudly as possible.
- Captain Obvious — A mocking name for someone who states the obvious.
- ants in one's pants — Restless, unable to sit still.
- blistering barnacles — A comic exclamation of surprise or anger.
- let's hit the road — Let's leave; let's get going.
- gone with the wind — Gone forever, vanished without a trace.
From our untranslatable words
- Flâner — To wander a city slowly and aimlessly, savouring it with no destination in mind — the art…
- Retrouvailles — The joy of reuniting with someone after a long time apart.
- L'esprit de l'escalier — Thinking of the perfect comeback only after the moment has passed — on your way down the…