monkey's paw
Wish-granting relic
A monkey's paw is a talisman that grants wishes but with terrible unintended consequences—you get what you asked for in the worst possible way.
From W.W.
Jacobs's 1902 short story of the same name, in which a dried monkey's paw grants three wishes that bring disaster.
The phrase now describes any situation where getting what you want carries a hidden cost: Be careful what you wish for—it's a monkey's paw.
Brief prose fiction
- horrorExtreme fear or disgust
- gothicDark, mysterious aesthetic
- cautionary taleStory illustrating consequences
- fableMoral tale with animals
allegory · moral · hubris · fate · suspense · dread · foreboding · classic
Malevolent incantation
- jinxCurse bringing misfortune
- maledictionVerbal invocation of harm
- baneCause of destruction
- doomUnavoidable grim fate
affliction · blight · misfortune · retribution · backfire · price · penalty · punishment
Intense wanting
- grantedGiven or allowed officially
- three wishesFolklore's granted requests
- requestFormal act of seeking
- pleaFormal request or defense
longing · yearning · desperate · greed · temptation · bargain · cost · regret
Magical protective charm
- relicPreserved ancient object
- amuletWorn protective token
- curioOdd collectible item
- fetishIrrational devotion to something
heirloom · totem · antiquity · mummified · severed · withered · shriveled · grotesque
Rotating motion or surprise
- consequenceResult of an action
- unexpectedNot anticipated beforehand
- outcomeFinal result of events
- reversalComplete change of direction
backfire · paradox · tragic irony · poetic justice · pyrrhic · hollow victory · ruined · undone
short story
Brief prose fiction
- horrorExtreme fear or disgust
- gothicDark, mysterious aesthetic
- cautionary taleStory illustrating consequences
fable · allegory · moral · hubris · fate · suspense · dread · foreboding · classic · Victorian
hex
Malevolent incantation
- jinxCurse bringing misfortune
- maledictionVerbal invocation of harm
- baneCause of destruction
doom · affliction · blight · misfortune · retribution · backfire · price · penalty · punishment · corruption
desire
Intense wanting
- grantedGiven or allowed officially
- three wishesFolklore's granted requests
- requestFormal act of seeking
plea · longing · yearning · desperate · greed · temptation · bargain · cost · regret · unintended
talisman
Magical protective charm
fetish · heirloom · totem · antiquity · mummified · severed · withered · shriveled · grotesque · macabre
twist
Rotating motion or surprise
- consequenceResult of an action
- unexpectedNot anticipated beforehand
- outcomeFinal result of events
reversal · backfire · paradox · tragic irony · poetic justice · pyrrhic · hollow victory · ruined · undone · technicality
magic
Supernatural or illusory power
- occultConcealed from view
- sorceryPractice of dark magic
- enchantmentMagical influence over someone
necromancy · voodoo · shamanism · seance · conjuring · dark arts · mystical · eldritch · uncanny · otherworldly
- Cursed Objectscursed ring, voodoo doll, evil eye charm, Hope Diamond
- wisheswish, make a wish, wish granted, wish fulfillment, wish list
- Fictional ObjectsExcalibur, magic carpet, invisibility cloak, Mjolnir, One Ring
- magical artifactsamulet, talisman, wand, grimoire, spellbook
- ironic twiststwist of fate, poetic justice, dramatic irony, situational irony, tragic irony
monkey's pawblessing
Prayer seeking divine favor
fairy godmother · answered prayer · boon · genie in a bottle · wishing well
monkey's pawAladdin's lamp
Wish-granting spirit container
magic lamp · holy grail · genie in a bottle · lucky charm · four-leaf clover
monkey's pawhappily ever after
Traditional story's final promise
fairy tale ending · wish fulfillment · just reward · Cinderella story · happy ending
monkey, paw, monkeys, paws, monkeyed, monkeying, pawing, pawed