poisoned chalice

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• Received-Pronunciation: /ˈpɔɪzn̩d ˈtʃælɪs/
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• General-American: /ˈpɔɪzənd ˈtʃælɪs/
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• General-American: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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• rhymes with -ælɪs
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From poisoned + chalice (“a large drinking cup”), referring to a chalice containing a poisoned drink which is offered to someone. The earliest use of the term cited in the Oxford English Dictionary is in Shakespeare’s Macbeth (c. 1606), in a speech in which Macbeth flinches from the prospective murder of King Duncan: see the quotation.

29 source translations are retained for this English entry.

• Belarusian: мядзве́джая паслу́га (mjadzvjédžaja paslúha) — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Chinese Mandarin: 毒藥聖杯 /毒药圣杯 — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Chinese Mandarin: 糖衣毒藥 /糖衣毒药 (tángyīdúyào) — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Czech: danajský dar — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Czech: medvědí služba — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Danish: bjørnetjeneste — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Dutch: gifbeker — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Dutch: vergiftigd geschenk — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Estonian: karuteene — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Finnish: karhunpalvelus — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Finnish: myrkkymalja — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• French: cadeau empoisonné — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• French: tunique de Nessus — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Galician: agasallo envelenado — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Georgian: დათვური სამსახური (datvuri samsaxuri) — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• German: Bärendienst — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• German: Danaergeschenk — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• German: vergiftetes Geschenk — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Italian: regalo avvelenato — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Norwegian Bokmål: bjørnetjeneste — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Norwegian Nynorsk: bjørneteneste — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Polish: koszula Dejaniry — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Polish: niedźwiedzia przysługa — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Russian: медве́жья услу́га (medvéžʹja uslúga) — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Serbo-Croatian: медвеђа услуга — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Serbo-Croatian: medvjeđa usluga — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Slovak: danajský dar — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Spanish: regalo envenenado — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful
• Swedish: björntjänst — something initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful