Damocles
noun
Dam·o·cles
ˈda-mə-ˌklēz 
: a courtier of ancient Syracuse held to have been seated at a banquet beneath a sword hung by a single hair
Examples of Damocles in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
But just as affordability may be improving, the Damocles Sword of import tariffs set to go into effect on April 2 represents a roadblock.
—
Ed Garsten, Forbes, 22 Mar. 2025
That may well be Trump’s end game after all: The crisis may pass, but the threat of tariffs will hang like the Sword of Damocles over any investments in Mexico and Canada for the remainder of his administration or longer, giving persuasive arguments to corporations to stay at home.
—Juan Pablo Spinetto, Twin Cities, 9 Feb. 2025
In those days, heart attacks hung like the Sword of Damocles.
—Budd Shenkin, The Mercury News, 9 Jan. 2025
The Sword of Damocles that killed off The Sisters Squad is swinging ever closer.
—Jack King, Vulture, 27 Oct. 2024
In Operation Damocles, Mossad went after the German scientists with letter bombs and threatened their families.
—Dan De Luce, NBC News, 20 Sep. 2024
Nadya Tolokonnikova, at the OK Linz museum, beneath her Damocles Sword.
—Corey Seymour, Vogue, 20 June 2024
Extending that pause would remove a Sword of Damocles hanging over Laguna Honda and allow the facility to focus exclusively on working to regain its certification, Roland Pickens, interim chief executive, told the city’s health commission on Tuesday.
—Nanette Asimov, San Francisco Chronicle, 18 Jan. 2023
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Ed Garsten, Forbes, 22 Mar. 2025
That may well be Trump’s end game after all: The crisis may pass, but the threat of tariffs will hang like the Sword of Damocles over any investments in Mexico and Canada for the remainder of his administration or longer, giving persuasive arguments to corporations to stay at home.
—Juan Pablo Spinetto, Twin Cities, 9 Feb. 2025
In those days, heart attacks hung like the Sword of Damocles.
—Budd Shenkin, The Mercury News, 9 Jan. 2025
The Sword of Damocles that killed off The Sisters Squad is swinging ever closer.
—Jack King, Vulture, 27 Oct. 2024
In Operation Damocles, Mossad went after the German scientists with letter bombs and threatened their families.
—Dan De Luce, NBC News, 20 Sep. 2024
Nadya Tolokonnikova, at the OK Linz museum, beneath her Damocles Sword.
—Corey Seymour, Vogue, 20 June 2024
Extending that pause would remove a Sword of Damocles hanging over Laguna Honda and allow the facility to focus exclusively on working to regain its certification, Roland Pickens, interim chief executive, told the city’s health commission on Tuesday.
—Nanette Asimov, San Francisco Chronicle, 18 Jan. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Damocles.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Damocles. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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