mixed blessing

American  

noun

1. something that, although generally favorable or advantageous, has one or more unfavorable or disadvantageous features.

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mixed blessing British  

noun

1. an event, situation, etc, having both advantages and disadvantages

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mixed blessing Idioms  

1. Something that has both good and bad features, as in Being accepted by the college was a mixed blessing, since she couldn't afford the tuition. [First half of 1900s]

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Etymology

Origin of mixed blessing

First recorded in 1930–35

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mixed blessing

It’s the mixed blessing of still being close to where you’re from, yet sung with a wisp of yearning.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 22, 2026

For yield-focused dividend investors, however, it could be a mixed blessing.

From Barron's ● Jan. 6, 2026

For Breanna's mum Megan Easton, the ban is a mixed blessing.

From BBC ● Dec. 10, 2025

And if you are drawing Social Security and you benefit each year from the annual cost-of-living adjustment, that, too, is a mixed blessing.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 19, 2025

But gaining access to all of that information turned out to be something of a mixed blessing.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline