A supposed remedy capable of solving every problem in a broad area.
Reach for it when naming an all-purpose solution, often while questioning whether one can exist
The new timetable helped, but nobody treated it as a panacea for staff shortages.
| playful | |
|---|---|
| everyday | |
| professional | |
| formal |
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playful
magic fix
Suits an implausibly easy solution promoted without enough evidence
Careful Magic fix is openly dismissive and unsuitable when praise is sincere.
playful
silver bullet
Fits when rejecting the idea of one simple decisive fix
Careful Silver bullet is a metaphor associated with technology and management talk.
everyday
answer
Fits when context already makes the problem and scope clear
Careful Answer may solve one question and does not imply broad reach.
everyday
cure-all
Suits a solution claimed to remedy many unrelated difficulties
Careful Cure-all is informal and often carries more obvious skepticism.
professional
comprehensive solution
Fits when several causes are addressed through coordinated measures
Careful Comprehensive does not mean literally universal and is a more defensible claim.
formal
universal remedy
Fits if the all-encompassing medical or figurative claim needs stating plainly
Careful Universal remedy is descriptive rather than an established compact term.
no panacea
More funding is no panacea unless recruitment and training improve too.
universal panacea
The committee resisted presenting automation as a universal panacea.
panacea for
One workshop cannot be a panacea for years of unequal access.
Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: EncycloPetey, American accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 Updated
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