Home UK English silver bullet

Meaning of silver bullet in English:

silver bullet

noun

  • 1A bullet made of silver, supposedly the only weapon that could kill a werewolf.

    ‘She looked closely at it and said, ‘Kind of like the silver bullet that killed the werewolf’.’
    • ‘You've probably heard about that bit of lore where a werewolf can only be killed by a silver bullet.’
    • ‘For the benefit of those unfamiliar with the habits of werewolves, it's revealed through this story-with-a-twist that they only come out at night, and can only be killed by a silver bullet.’
    • ‘Back in the old days, the only cure for a werewolf was a silver bullet.’
    • ‘In the old days, a silver bullet, a dose of sunlight or a stake through the chest would be enough.’
    1. 1.1often with negative A simple and seemingly magical solution to a complicated problem.
      ‘there is no 'silver bullet' that can prevent flooding entirely’
      • ‘he doesn't expect to find a silver bullet that will cure all forms of asthma’
      • ‘But I've got to tell you it looks at the moment very, very promising, that it could be you know, a sort of a golden bullet or a silver bullet if you like.’
      • ‘Destroying any insurgency is a complex, long-term task for which there is no smart weapon, silver bullet, or critical node that assures quick victory.’
      • ‘There will never be a silver bullet in security, just like there is never a silver bullet in any other line of work, but does that mean we should give up trying?’
      • ‘The term is kind of a joke; calling something a silver bullet is a way of saying that it's supposed to do something impossible.’
      • ‘I acknowledge that a database is not the silver bullet.’
      • ‘Like so much in politics, I don't think there is a silver bullet here.’
      • ‘This bill is not a silver bullet; it will not eradicate all binge drinking.’
      • ‘Nor will the introduction of incentives be a silver bullet that resolves all problems in the industry.’
      • ‘Finding a vaccine that could prevent AIDS is considered the silver bullet for the developing world.’
      • ‘It is not a silver bullet; it does not spell the end of child abuse and neglect.’
      • ‘‘I'm not saying I've discovered the silver bullet,’ Garique says.’
      • ‘The academic literature on DDT and malaria doesn't suggest that DDT is the anti-malaria silver bullet that some people make it out to be.’
      • ‘Dealing with the digital divide is beyond the scope of any single initiative and technology is not a silver bullet for the world's problems.’
      • ‘Used properly, arbitration could be an important refinement of modern computer security practices - but it is not a silver bullet.’
      • ‘Parental leave seems to play an important role in easing some of these issues, but it is by no means a silver bullet.’
      • ‘Employers would be wise to look for ways to contain these costs, but there is not a silver bullet.’
      • ‘It is not a silver bullet, but a useful tool in helping combat these problems.’
      • ‘I don't think these allegations will prove to be the silver bullet.’
      • ‘While antibiotics are hardly a silver bullet and they are useless against viruses, they raise the simple possibility of treatment for bacterial or fungal illnesses.’
      • ‘The timing of the new highway bill will not be the silver bullet to help us this year.’