IdiomDaily Life
French
FrenchLa boîte de Pandore
Meaning: Something that releases a host of troubles once opened.
Literally: Pandora's box
Example: “En autorisant les exceptions, le règlement a ouvert la boîte de Pandore.” — By allowing exceptions, the rules opened Pandora's box.
English equivalent: Pandora's box
Equivalents in other languages
English: Pandora's box
Origin: In Hesiod it was a jar, not a box — the mistranslation is Erasmus's and is now universal. Hope remained inside when everything else escaped, and whether that is a consolation is disputed.
More French idioms
- Mettre pavillon bas To admit defeat.
- Dire pis que pendre de quelqu'un To speak extremely ill of someone.
- Remettre les pendules à l'heure To set the record straight and restore order.
- Ce n'est pas le Pérou It is not a fortune; it is nothing to get excited about.
- Un pétard mouillé A revelation that was supposed to explode and did not.
- Peu ou prou More or less; to some degree.
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- Tête de mule An impossibly stubborn person who refuses to change their mind no matter what.
- C'est une vraie chèvre They're hopelessly stubborn and infuriating — a goat that refuses to be moved.
- Casse-pieds A massive bore or pain in the neck — someone who wears you down with their irritating way…
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