Meanings
plural magic bullets
- idiomaticA simple remedy for a difficult or complex problem, especially a cure for a disease.
History shows that there's no magic bullet for a global financial crisis.
1 more example
In recent years, penicillin-based drugs have lost some of their magic bullet status due to the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
Synonyms: miracle, panacea, silver bullet, wonder drug
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA simple remedy for a difficult or complex problem, especially a cure for a disease.
Origin
- GermanZauberkugel
- Englishmagic bullet
Calque of German Zauberkugel. Coined by physician Paul Ehrlich as an allusion to the opera Der Freischütz. Compare silver bullet, from werewolf lore.
More words from German
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Finnish ihmelääke
- ihmelääkea remedy
French panacée, solution miracle
- panacéea remedy
- solution miraclea remedy
- remède miraclea remedy
- formule magiquea remedy
Greek μαγική συνταγή
- μαγική συνταγή (magikí syntagí)a remedy
Italian panacea
- panaceaa remedy
Japanese 魔弾
- 魔弾 (madan)a remedy
Portuguese panaceia, santo remédio
- panaceiaa remedy
- santo remédioa remedy
- fórmula mágicaa remedy
Cite this entry
magic bullet. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/magic%20bullet
“magic bullet.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/magic%20bullet. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “magic bullet,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/magic%20bullet.
Source: magic bullet on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.