a Trojan horse
Meaning: Something that seems harmless but hides a threat inside.
Language: English
Literally: (Already vivid in English)
Example: “The free app was a Trojan horse that harvested users' contacts.”
Category: Animals
Origin: In Greek legend, told in Virgil's Aeneid and in the Odyssey, the Greeks left a giant wooden horse outside Troy with soldiers hidden inside; the Trojans took it in, and the city fell. The term was later borrowed for disguised computer malware.
Equivalents in other languages
- French: Un cheval de Troie — literally: A Trojan horse
More idioms — Animals
- the dogs bark, but the caravan moves on — Let critics complain; one carries on regardless.
- neither fish nor fowl — Something that fits into no clear category.
- give free rein — To give someone complete freedom to act.
- like a bat out of hell — Extremely fast.
- a snake-oil salesman — A swindler who sells fake remedies or worthless solutions.
- pipped at the post — To be beaten at the very last moment.
More English idioms
- drain the cup to the dregs — To endure a hardship or humiliation to the very end.
- the icing on the cake — An extra good thing added to something already good.
- only have eyes for — To be interested in or attracted to one person only.
- lose sleep over — To worry a lot about something.
- like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic — Doing something pointless while a disaster happens.
- shoot oneself in the foot — To damage one's own interests through a foolish action.
From our compliments & insults
- Quel râleur / quelle râleuse — You never stop moaning — everything is a complaint, nothing is ever good enough.
- Peau de vache — A mean, difficult, and unpleasant person — tough and unyielding like tanned hide.
- Eres un aguafiestas — You're a killjoy — you pour cold water on everyone's fun the moment you arrive.