Yahoo Web Search

Search results

    • A benefit that is also a liability

      • double-edged sword (plural double-edged swords) (figurative) A benefit that is also a liability, or (a benefit) that carries some significant but not-so-obvious cost or risk.
      en.wiktionary.org › wiki › double-edged_sword
  1. People also ask

  2. Aug 26, 2021 · The meaning of DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD is something that has or can have both favorable and unfavorable consequences. How to use double-edged sword in a sentence.

  3. Mar 24, 2021 · Figuratively, double-edged sword refers to something that has both good and bad consequences. When you’re wielding a double-edged sword, you have to be careful that you don’t cut yourself when you’re trying to swing it at an opponent. Such a sword can be helpful (in striking your opponent) and harmful (if you strike yourself).

    • Etymology
    • Noun
    • See Also

    From the notion that if two sides of the same blade are sharp, it cuts both ways. The metaphor may have originated from the Arabic expression سَيْفٌ ذُو حَدَّيْنِ‎ (sayfun ḏū ḥaddayni, “double-edged sword”) or from the Hebrew expression חרב פיפיות‎ (“double-mouthed sword”). The metaphor is first attested to in English in the 15th century.

    double-edged sword (plural double-edged swords) 1. (figurative) A benefit that is also a liability, or (a benefit) that carries some significant but not-so-obvious cost or risk. 1.1. 2020 June 23, Tiffany Hsu, “Ad Boycott of Facebook Keeps Growing”, in New York Times‎: 1.1.1. He added: “Facebook is a double-edged sword. You don’t want to support it...

  4. Aug 12, 2022 · A real double-edged sword, is a sword with two cutting edges, like most Western swords of the medieval time period—as seen on TV shows like Game of Thrones. Double-edged swords are dangerous to use because they can easily hurt the person using them. This common English phrase was first used in print during the 15th century.

  5. Double-edged sword definition: a sword whose blade has two cutting edges. See examples of DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD used in a sentence.

  6. 5 days ago · a double-edged sword. something that has both a good and a bad side. The strong currency is a double-edged sword. It helps the nation's banks, but it also raises the costs of exports for car and electronics manufacturers. Easy Learning Idioms Dictionary.

  1. People also search for