double-edged sword

English

A pair of literal double-edged swords.

Etymology

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.

Pronunciation

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Noun

double-edged sword (plural double-edged swords)

2. (figurative) A benefit that is also a liability, or (a benefit) that carries some significant but not-so-obvious cost or risk.
   • 2020 June 23, Tiffany Hsu, “Ad Boycott of Facebook Keeps Growing”, in New York Times‎^[1]:

     He added: “Facebook is a double-edged sword. You don’t want to support it, but you have to use it in order to reach a large audience.”

   • 2021 February 9, Christina Newland, “Is Tom Hanks part of a dying breed of genuine movie stars?”, in BBC‎^[2]:

     The double-edged sword of movie stardom remains the same as it ever was: when a persona is so fixed in the public mind, it's what people love you for, and it becomes difficult to deviate from.

   • 2021 July 28, Ben Jones, “When BR got cracking after withdrawal of 'Blue Trains'”, in RAIL, number 936, page 32:

     Of course, social media is a double-edged sword, and the opportunity for passengers to communicate their feelings to media teams is not always a happy one.

   • 2023 July 21, Rachel Hall, quoting Sebastian Brixey-Williams, “Anti-nuclear groups welcome Oppenheimer film but say it fails to depict true horror”, in The Guardian‎^[3], →ISSN:

     “Nuclear weapons are becoming part of the international conversation again and that’s a double-edged sword. I’m glad they are, but this is because nuclear risks are rising,” […]

4. (figurative) A neutral principle that has applications that may be either positive (beneficial) or negative (adverse) to one's own interests.

   The unintended ambiguity of the phrase was a double-edged sword: it spurred litigation but it also ended up shielding good-faith actors.

5. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see double-edged,‎ sword.

Synonyms

• dual-edged sword
• two-edged sword

Translations

idiomatic

• Arabic: سَيْفٌ ذُو حَدَّيْنِ m (sayfun ḏū ḥaddayni)
• Bulgarian: нож с две остриета (nož s dve ostrieta, literally “a knife with two sharp ends”)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 雙刃劍／双刃剑 (zh) (shuāngrènjiàn) (a double-edged sword)

• Czech: dvousečný meč m (a double-edged sword)
• Danish: tveægget sværd n
• Dutch: tweesnijdend zwaard (nl) n
• Esperanto: ambaŭtranĉa glavo
• Finnish: kaksiteräinen miekka
• French: arme à double tranchant (fr) f
• German: zweischneidiges Schwert n
• Greek: δίκοπο μαχαίρι n (díkopo machaíri)
• Hebrew: חֶרֶב פִּיפִיּוֹת (he) f (ẖérev pifiyót)
• Icelandic: tvíeggjað sverð n
• Indonesian: pedang bermata dua (id)
• Italian: arma a doppio taglio f
• Japanese: 諸刃の剣 (ja) (もろはのつるぎ, moroha no tsurugi) (a double-edged sword)
• Korean: 양날의 검 (yangnar-ui geom) (a double-edged sword)
• Malay: serampang dua mata (a two-sided spear/harpoon: spear fish with either end, with the other end being a safety hazard)
• Persian: شمشیر دو لبه (šamšir-e do labe)
• Polish: miecz obosieczny m
• Portuguese: faca de dois gumes (pt) f (a knife with two edges)
• Romanian: sabie cu două tăișuri f
• Russian: па́лка о двух конца́х (ru) f (pálka o dvux koncáx) (a stick with two ends), обоюдоо́стрый меч m (obojudoóstryj meč) (a double-edged sword)
• Serbo-Croatian: мач са две оштрице m, mač sa dve oštrice
• Spanish: arma de doble filo (es) f (a double-edged weapon), arma de dos filos (es) f (a two-edged weapon)
• Swedish: tveeggat svärd n
• Turkish: iki ucu boklu değnek (vulgar) (a wand with both ends in shit)
• Zazaki: wurdna hektara tede mende

See also

• dual-use technology

See also

• Midas
• Trojan horse
• a blessing and a curse
• blurse
• be careful what you wish for