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• panacea
  panacea

  noun

  a remedy for all disease or ills.
• Panacea
  Panacea

  noun

  an ancient Greek goddess of healing.

panacea

¹ American  

[pan-uh-see-uh] / ˌpæn əˈsi ə /

noun

• panaceas
  plural

1. 

   a remedy for all disease or ills.

   Synonyms:

   cure-all, nostrum, elixir

2. an answer or solution for all problems or difficulties.

   His economic philosophy is a good one, but he tries to use it as a panacea.

   Synonyms:

   cure-all, nostrum, elixir

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Panacea ² American  

[pan-uh-see-uh] / ˌpæn əˈsi ə /

noun

1. an ancient Greek goddess of healing.

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panacea British  

/ ˌpænəˈsɪə /

noun

1. a remedy for all diseases or ills

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• panacean
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• panaceas
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of panacea

First recorded in 1540–50; from Latin, from Greek panákeia, equivalent to panake-, stem of panakḗs “all-healing” ( pan- “all” + akḗs “a cure”) + -ia noun suffix; pan-, -ia

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Explanation

If someone offers you a pill that promises eternal life, don’t take the pill. It’s a panacea, a remedy that falsely claims to solve every problem ever. The Greek word pan means “all” (think of a panorama, a view where you can see everywhere). The Greek word for “cure” is akēs (which looks like the word “aches”). Those are the roots of panacea, a cure for all aches. But a panacea doesn’t really cure everything; it just acts like it can. Use the word to describe an unbelievable solution, like a new law that will make everyone rich, or a robot that does your homework for you.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

panacea Panacea panaceas

"This is not some kind of panacea," he said, stressing that the turrets were part of "an integrated air defence system that provides engagement of these targets at different tiers".

From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026

But as has become increasingly clear, private equity is not the panacea that many made it out to be.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026

Of course, passing American Dream and Promise Act is not a panacea.

From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2026

But moving a school population to another location is no panacea.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026

He will talk quickly and eagerly about nothing at all, snatching at any subject as a panacea to pain.

From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier

The assets held by the trust originated from the early members of the Panacea Society, she says.

From BBC ● Nov. 16, 2019

The Panacea Society began in 1918 after its leader, Octavia, was discovered by her first followers to be the Daughter of God.

From The Guardian ● Jun. 19, 2019

The manager of the R.V. park, though, said this month that Mr. Bearden is still there, still in Panacea, and like the rest of the Panhandle, still holding on.

From New York Times ● Dec. 28, 2018

Obesity researchers Peter Janiszewski and Travis Saunders, in Obesity Panacea, focus on the latest weight-loss gimmicks, plumbing questions such as whether Instagram fitness gurus inspire people to become more active.

From Washington Post ● Nov. 23, 2018

I feared that the Panacea and Cure-Everything trick had been played too often, but I determined to make one big try, and I think that at last my fortune is made.

From Doesticks, What He Says by Q. K. Philander Doesticks

Some parents of children with autism, desperate for a remedy, have long reached for dubious and at times dangerous panaceas, including hyperbaric oxygen chambers and chelation therapy, used for the treatment of heavy metal poisoning.

From Salon ● Dec. 15, 2025

There are no panaceas, but we can and must do better for our communities and those suffering from behavioral health issues.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 17, 2023

Digital platforms are not panaceas for food insecurity, notes Georgiana Nica-Avram at Nottingham University Business School.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2022

I wish I could offer an easy formula for countering this kind of deception, but I am not in the business of selling panaceas or telling fairy tales.

From Slate ● Jan. 23, 2017

Warfare is an art, not a science; it knows no unvarying laws, and possesses neither specifics nor panaceas.

From Story of the War in South Africa 1899-1900 by A. T. (Alfred Thayer) Mahan

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Related Words

• elixir

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