sword of Damocles
noun phrase
sword of Dam·o·cles
-ˈda-mə-ˌklēz 
variants
often Sword of Damocles
: an impending disaster
Examples of sword of Damocles in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
My hunch is that many who in private criticize Israel or America’s support for Israel never say a word in public, cowed into silence by the sword of Damocles hanging over them — the omnipresent threat of charges of antisemitism.
—
Chicago Tribune, 13 Aug. 2025
In other words, that 30-pound goal hangs over my head like the sword of Damocles and the slow results compared with the end goal can be defeating.
—Bryant Stamford, The Courier-Journal, 25 July 2025
Fintech analyst Alex Johnson points out that this dependence on interchange economics creates a sword of Damocles scenario.
—Boaz Sobrado, Forbes.com, 30 May 2025
Suddenly, the illness is no longer a ghost, a sword of Damocles that can fall at any moment.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 17 May 2025
Even if Google can maintain the status quo for the foreseeable future, the company could be headed into Google I/O in late May with a sword of Damocles dangling over its metaphorical head.
—Ryan Whitwam, ArsTechnica, 21 Apr. 2025
The judge, however, has rejected the DOJ’s effort to hold the potential reinstatement of the charges over Adams’s head like a sword of Damocles.
—Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 2 Apr. 2025
That should push Iran to calculate that a comprehensive deal is a better bet; if diplomacy is to bear any fruit, Israeli thinking goes, Tehran will have to see that a sword of Damocles hangs over its head.
—Dmitry Adamsky, Foreign Affairs, 26 Jan. 2014
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Chicago Tribune, 13 Aug. 2025
In other words, that 30-pound goal hangs over my head like the sword of Damocles and the slow results compared with the end goal can be defeating.
—Bryant Stamford, The Courier-Journal, 25 July 2025
Fintech analyst Alex Johnson points out that this dependence on interchange economics creates a sword of Damocles scenario.
—Boaz Sobrado, Forbes.com, 30 May 2025
Suddenly, the illness is no longer a ghost, a sword of Damocles that can fall at any moment.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 17 May 2025
Even if Google can maintain the status quo for the foreseeable future, the company could be headed into Google I/O in late May with a sword of Damocles dangling over its metaphorical head.
—Ryan Whitwam, ArsTechnica, 21 Apr. 2025
The judge, however, has rejected the DOJ’s effort to hold the potential reinstatement of the charges over Adams’s head like a sword of Damocles.
—Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 2 Apr. 2025
That should push Iran to calculate that a comprehensive deal is a better bet; if diplomacy is to bear any fruit, Israeli thinking goes, Tehran will have to see that a sword of Damocles hangs over its head.
—Dmitry Adamsky, Foreign Affairs, 26 Jan. 2014
Cite this Entry
“Sword of Damocles.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sword%20of%20Damocles. Accessed 11 Nov. 2025.
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