silver bullet
Cure-all solution
A silver bullet is a simple, guaranteed solution to a difficult problem.
The term comes from folklore where only a silver bullet could kill a werewolf or other supernatural creature.
In practice, the phrase usually appears in the negative: There's no silver bullet for climate change.
People who claim to have found one are usually selling something.
Universal cure
- cure-allSupposed universal remedy
- quick fixHasty temporary solution
- remedyCurative treatment or fix
- answerSolution to query
antidote · breakthrough · miracle cure · one-size-fits-all · easy answer · golden key · magic wand · shortcut
Shapeshifting wolf-person
- vampireBlood-drinking undead creature
- lycanthropeShape-shifter into wolf
- shapeshifterBeing altering its form
- wolfsbaneToxic flowering plant
full moon · monster · supernatural · curse · talisman · amulet · charm · protection
Traditional explanatory tale
- fallacyError in reasoning
- illusionMisleading sensory impression
- oversimplificationStripping complexity unfairly
- wishful thinkingBelief shaped by desire
unrealistic · naive · impractical · nonexistent · chimera · pipe dream · fantasy · fool's gold
panacea
Universal cure
answer · antidote · breakthrough · miracle cure · one-size-fits-all · easy answer · golden key · magic wand · shortcut · band-aid
werewolf
Shapeshifting wolf-person
- vampireBlood-drinking undead creature
- lycanthropeShape-shifter into wolf
- shapeshifterBeing altering its form
wolfsbane · full moon · monster · supernatural · curse · talisman · amulet · charm · protection · undead
myth
Traditional explanatory tale
- fallacyError in reasoning
- illusionMisleading sensory impression
- oversimplificationStripping complexity unfairly
wishful thinking · unrealistic · naive · impractical · nonexistent · chimera · pipe dream · fantasy · fool's gold · mirage
- metal folklorealchemy, cold iron, cursed gold, fairy gold, leprechaun gold
- advantagesedge, leverage, upper hand, leg up, head start
- business jargonacronym, scalability, buzzword, drill down, low-hanging fruit
- Color Idiomsblack sheep, blue moon, green light, red flag, white lie
- combat idiomsstab in the back, dodge a bullet, in the crosshairs, fire away, take a shot
- cure-allspanacea, cure-all, nostrum, snake oil, miracle cure
silver bulletband-aid solution
Superficial fix masking deeper problems
half-measure · quick fix · palliative · dead end · fool's errand
silver bulletiterative process
Method of successive refinements
brick by brick · slow build · long game · slow burn · war of attrition
silver bulletwicked problem
Issue with no definitive solution
Gordian knot · quagmire · morass · hopeless case · impossibility
silver, silvery, silverware, silvered, silvering, magic bullet, silversmith, silverfish, silverside