Pandora's box

Save This Word!

See synonyms for Pandora's box on Thesaurus.com

noun

a source of extensive but unforeseen troubles or problems: The senate investigation turned out to be a Pandora's box for the administration.

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

who

whom

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of Pandora's box

First recorded in 1570–80

Words nearby Pandora's box

pandit, P. and L., P & O, pandora, Pandorae Fretum, Pandora's box, pandora shell, pandore, pandour, pandowdy, p & p

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Pandora's box in a sentence

“A guy drives up in a 2008 Mercedes, brand new,” Harry S. Connelly Jr. says in the video, according to the Times.
Are Police Stealing People’s Property?|Joan Blades, Matt Kibbe|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST
“Personal hotspots can get speeds of up to 60 Mb/s down, whereas hotel Wi-Fi can be as slow as 1.5 Mb/s,” Sesar said.
How ‘Ethical’ Hotel Chain Marriott Gouges Guests in the Name of Wi-Fi Security|Kyle Chayka|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In response to the screen quota cut, South Korea established a “cinema tax” on the box office.
Propaganda, Protest, and Poisonous Vipers: The Cinema War in Korea|Rich Goldstein|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He goes into some detail into what it took to persuade voters to pass marriage equality at the ballot box in four states in 2012.
The Real Story Behind the Fight for Marriage Equality|E.J. Graff|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST

How to Train Your Dragon 2, the tenth highest grossing movie in 2014 America, made $22 million at the Korean box office.
Propaganda, Protest, and Poisonous Vipers: The Cinema War in Korea|Rich Goldstein|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Beside her was a box of bonbons, which she held out at intervals to Madame Ratignolle.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
Now and then the boy who had bought Squinty, and who was taking him home, would look around at his pet in the slatted box.
Squinty the Comical Pig|Richard Barnum
The little pig in the box felt himself being lifted out of the wagon.
Squinty the Comical Pig|Richard Barnum
Mrs. Newbolt was cutting splints for her new sun-bonnet out of a pasteboard box.
The Bondboy|George W. (George Washington) Ogden
With a hammer the boy knocked off some of the slats of the small box in which Squinty had made his journey.
Squinty the Comical Pig|Richard Barnum

Cultural definitions for Pandora's box

Pandora's box

In classical mythology, a box that Zeus gave to Pandora, the first woman, with strict instructions that she not open it. Pandora's curiosity soon got the better of her, and she opened the box. All the evils and miseries of the world flew out to afflict mankind.

notes for Pandora's box

To “open a Pandora's box” is to create an uncontrollable situation that will cause great grief.

Other Idioms and Phrases with Pandora's box

Pandora's box

A source of unforeseen trouble, as in Revising the tax code is opening a Pandora's box. This equivalent for the modern can of worms comes from the Greek legend in which Pandora, entrusted with a box containing the world's ills, is overcome by curiosity and opens it, thereby releasing them. [Late 1500s]