Trojan horse

[troh-juhn hawrs]

noun

1. Classical Mythology.,  a gigantic hollow wooden horse, left by the Greeks upon their pretended abandonment of the siege of Troy. The Trojans took it into Troy and Greek soldiers concealed in the horse opened the gates to the Greek army at night and conquered the city.

2. a person or thing intended to undermine or destroy from within.

3. Also called Trojan. Computers.,  a nonreplicating computer program planted illegally in another program to do damage locally when the software is activated.

Trojan Horse

noun

1. Also called: the Wooden Horse. Greek myth the huge wooden hollow figure of a horse left outside Troy by the Greeks when they feigned retreat and dragged inside by the Trojans. The men concealed inside it opened the city to the final Greek assault

2. a trap intended to undermine an enemy

3. computing a bug inserted into a program or system designed to be activated after a certain time or a certain number of operations

Trojan Horse

1. In classical mythology, a large, hollow horse made of wood used by the Greeks to win the Trojan War (see also Trojan War). The resourceful Odysseus had come up with the plan for the horse. The Greeks hid soldiers inside it and left it outside the gates of Troy. They anchored their ships just out of sight of Troy and left a man behind to say that the goddess Athena would be pleased if the Trojans brought the horse inside the city and honored it. The Trojans took the bait, against the advice of Cassandra and Laocoon. That night the Greek army returned to Troy. The men inside the horse emerged and opened the city gates for their companions. The Greeks sacked the city, thus winning the war.

The story of the Trojan horse is the source of the saying “Beware of Greeks bearing gifts.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of Trojan Horse¹

First recorded in 1570–80, in 1835–40 Trojan horse for def. 2, and in 1970–75 Trojan horse for def. 3

Example Sentences

The fictional Norfolk-based host can be used as a comedic "Trojan horse", he says, to talk about taboo subjects and to "mock different kinds of received wisdom."

From BBC

The key to that was making it about this community, but it was a bit of a Trojan horse.

From Los Angeles Times

The premise of “Oh, Hi!” is something of a Trojan horse, as its girl-takes-boy-hostage concept creates a platform for conversations and considerations on the difficulties of dating.

From Los Angeles Times

“This jaw-dropping development proves that the Administration’s claim of using this information to prevent fraud is a Trojan horse that instead will primarily advance their goal of deporting millions of people,” she said.

From Los Angeles Times

A "Trojan horse" therapy that sneaks toxic drugs inside cancer cells is being made available on the NHS in England in a world first.

From BBC