Definition

Noun: 1. In Greek mythology: The first human woman, created by the gods. She was given a jar (often mistranslated as a "box") containing all the evils of the world, which she opened, releasing them into the world. Only hope remained inside. 2. A type of fish: A fish of the genus Pagellus, found in the Mediterranean and eastern Atlantic, also known as the "common pandora" or "king of the breams." 3. A musical instrument (historical): A rare, obsolete stringed instrument of the lute family, also spelled "pandore" or "bandora."

Usage Examples

• Noun (Mythology):
  • According to the myth, Pandora was created as a punishment for mankind.
  • The story of Pandora and her jar explains the origin of suffering in the world.
• Noun (Fish):
  • The chef prepared a grilled pandora with herbs and lemon.
  • We caught a large pandora while fishing off the coast.
• Noun (Instrument):
  • The museum's collection includes a beautifully crafted 16th-century pandora.

Advanced Usage

• "Pandora's box": An idiom meaning a source of extensive, unforeseen troubles. This is the most common modern usage derived from the myth.
  • The new law could open a Pandora's box of legal challenges.
• "Pandora" as a symbol: Used metaphorically to represent curiosity, unintended consequences, or the introduction of evil.
  • The invention acted as a modern Pandora, unleashing a wave of social change.

Variants and Related Words

• Pandora's box (idiomatic noun phrase): A process that once begun generates many complicated problems.
• Pandorean (adjective, rare): Relating to Pandora.
• Pandore / Bandora (noun): Alternate spellings for the musical instrument.

Synonyms

• (For the idiom "Pandora's box"): Can of worms, hornet's nest, quagmire.
• (For the fish): King of the breams, .

Related Idioms

• "Open Pandora's box": To start something that causes many unforeseen and unpleasant problems.
  • Questioning the old agreement might open Pandora's box.

Noun

1. (Greek mythology) the first woman; created by Hephaestus on orders from Zeus who presented her to Epimetheus along with a box filled with evils