pandora's box
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
A source of troubles or problems that cannot be controlled once released
Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt
Một nguồn gốc của rắc rối hoặc vấn đề không thể kiểm soát khi được giải phóng
Machine-translated — suggest a fix
Literally: a box owned by Pandora
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-30; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “pandora's box” mean?
A source of troubles or problems that cannot be controlled once released Literally: a box owned by Pandora
Is “pandora's box” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.