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Damocles

Damocles (dăm'uklēz) [key], in classical mythology, courtier at the court of Dionysius I. He so persistently praised the power and happiness of Dionysius that the tyrant, in order to show the precariousness of rank and power, gave a banquet and had a sword suspended above the head of Damocles by a single hair. Hence the expression “the sword of Damocles” to mean an ever-present peril.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

More on Damocles from Infoplease:

Damocles: meaning and definitions - Damocles: Definition and Pronunciation
Suggestions for spelling of encyclopedia/damocles - The Infoplease spelling checker combines spelling help with our dictionary and thesaurus
Damocles' Sword - Damocles' Sword Evil foreboded or dreaded. Damocles, the sycophant of Dionysius the elder, of ...
Damocles' Sword - Damocles' Sword Evil foreboded or dreaded. Damocles, the sycophant of Dionysius the elder, of ...
Hang by a Thread - Hang by a Thread (To). To be in a very precarious position. The allusion is to the sword of ...

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