Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

poisoned chalice

/ˈpɔɪzənd ˈtʃælɪs/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.90 in modern English

Syllables: poi-soned cha-lice
IPA: /ˈpɔɪzənd ˈtʃælɪs/

25

Scrabble Score

15

Letters

3

Syllables

11

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Something which is initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful; an apparently beneficial or benign instrument or scheme for causing death or harm.

Example Sentences

"[W]e but teach / Bloody Inſtructions, which, being taught, returne / To plague th' Inuentor. This euen-handed Iuſtice / Commends th' Ingredience of our poyſon'd Challice / To our owne lips."
"Let this, Englishmen, be a leſſon to you; throw from you the doctrine of equality, as you would the poiſoned chalice. Wherever this deteſtable principle gains ground to any extent, ruin muſt inevitably enſue."
"Remember the death of Wilson was fearfully avenged; and those yet live who can compel you to drink the dregs of your poisoned chalice.— [...]"
"You need not, therefore, be surprised to hear of the vigorous blockade of the Chesapeake and Hampton Roads, and of the ports of seceded States, and that if these States erect batteries at Memphis or Vicksburgh to intercept the commerce of the Mississippi, that measures of stern retaliation or resistance will be inaugurated by the Government, to force the poisoned chalice to the lips of those who first drugged it."
"The great spiritual visions of human history have also been poisoned chalices, the causes of untold misery and even savagery."
"His [Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani's] role last year in persuading Ayatollah [Ruhollah] Khomeini to agree a Gulf War ceasefire – a decision the imam likened "to drinking from a poisoned chalice" – enhanced his reputation for pragmatism."

Etymology

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.

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈpɔɪzənd ˈtʃælɪs/
British English: /ˈpɔɪzn̩d ˈtʃælɪs/

Inflected Forms

poisoned chalices (plural)

Phrases

monkey's paw Trojan horse white elephant

Frequently Paired Words

monkey's paw Trojan horse white elephant

Antonyms

blessing in disguise

Rhymes With

palace alice malice calais chalice cialis occipitofrontalis lingualis ansa cervicalis

Questions

How do you pronounce poisoned chalice?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈpɔɪzənd ˈtʃælɪs/.
What does poisoned chalice mean?: Something which is initially regarded as advantageous but which is later recognized to be disadvantageous or harmful; an apparently beneficial or benign instrument or scheme for causing death or harm.
Where does poisoned chalice come from?: 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.

How to pronounce poisoned chalice

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