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EN · C1 · idiom

a double-edged sword

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miecz obosieczny

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Flashcard #7379 · C1

a double-edged sword

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Dialogues in context

EN · C1

A Popular Video

  1. A

    We got a hundred messages after the video.

    Po filmie dostaliśmy sto wiadomości.

  2. B

    Publicity is a double-edged sword. We have to answer them now.

    Rozgłos to miecz obosieczny. Trzeba teraz na nie odpowiedzieć.

  3. A

    Shall we sort them by topic?

    Podzielimy je według tematu?

  4. B

    Yes, I'll take the questions about dates.

    Tak, ja zajmę się pytaniami o terminy.

No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.

Translations

Polishmiecz obosiecznyidiomNo voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
Germanein zweischneidiges SchwertidiomNo voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
Spanishun arma de doble filoidiomNo voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
Russianпалка о двух концахidiomNo voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.

Examples of use

Polish

Rozgłos może być mieczem obosiecznym.

No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
English

Publicity can be a double-edged sword.

No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
German

Öffentlichkeit kann ein zweischneidiges Schwert sein.

No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
Spanish

La publicidad puede ser un arma de doble filo.

No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
Russian

Публичность может быть палкой о двух концах.

No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.

Grammar

idiom

Dictionary form
a double-edged sword
  • Learn this expression as a whole and use the example to understand its context.

Example

Publicity can be a double-edged sword.

add fuel to the fire

dolewać oliwy do ognia

C1No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
sit on the fence

unikać opowiedzenia się po którejś stronie

C1No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
a red herring

mylący trop

C1No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
the devil is in the detail

diabeł tkwi w szczegółach

C1No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
the proof of the pudding is in the eating

wartość czegoś sprawdza się w praktyce

C1No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
a rule of thumb

praktyczna reguła orientacyjna

C1No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
This freedom is a double-edged sword: it allows action to be adapted to the situation but makes it harder to compare individuals' responsibilities.

Ta swoboda jest mieczem obosiecznym: pozwala dostosować działanie do sytuacji, ale utrudnia porównanie odpowiedzialności poszczególnych osób.

C2No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
This reconciliation is a double-edged sword: it ends the open dispute while entrenching the dependence the protagonist was trying to escape.

To pojednanie jest mieczem obosiecznym: kończy otwarty spór, a zarazem utrwala zależność, od której bohater próbował się uwolnić.

C2No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
If we compare only the time spent without considering the scope of the work, we may be comparing apples and oranges.

Porównując sam czas pracy bez uwzględnienia jej zakresu, możemy zestawiać jabłka z gruszkami.

C1No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
The game is not worth the candle if a minor improvement requires abandoning every previous arrangement.

Skórka nie jest warta wyprawki, jeśli drobna poprawa wymaga porzucenia wszystkich dotychczasowych ustaleń.

C1No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
When recognition becomes an end in itself, it is easy to lose sight of the cause it was meant to serve.

Gdy uznanie staje się celem samym w sobie, łatwo stracić z oczu sprawę, której miało służyć.

C2No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.
The Achilles' heel of this plan is not a shortage of ideas but dependence on a single source of information whose reliability has not been checked.

Piętą achillesową tego planu jest nie brak pomysłów, lecz zależność od jednego źródła informacji, którego wiarygodności nie sprawdzono.

C2No voice for this language is installed. Speech practice is still available.

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