snake oil

英 [ˈsneɪk ɔɪl]

美 [ˈsneɪk ɔɪl]

n.  推销者的所谓“万应灵药”; 毫无用处(或效果)的推销品

牛津词典

noun

• 推销者的所谓“万应灵药”；毫无用处（或效果）的推销品
  something, for example medicine, that sb tries to sell you, but that is not effective or useful
  1. a snake-oil salesman
     劣质品推销员

英英释义

noun

• communication (written or spoken) intended to deceive
  Synonym:humbug
• (medicine) any of various liquids sold as medicine (as by a travelling medicine show) but medically worthless

双语例句

• The authors rightly eschew the determinism peddled by the snake oil salesmen of futurology.
  报告作者正确地避开了未来学贩卖者散播的决定论。
• They'll react as if you're selling snake oil.
  他们会反应好像你是在贩卖蛇油。
• Please. Don't let the double dealing, snake oil politicians from Beijing share the spoils of this war.
  拜托，不要让那些从北京来的里外装好人，油腔滑调的政客分享这次战争的战利品。
• For Sarah Palin and her pals, man-made global warming is nothing but a "bunch of snake oil science".
  对莎拉佩林（sarahpalin）及其同党来说，由人类导致的全球变暖不过是些“江湖科学”。
• But there's going to be a lot of snake oil on the market in the decades, if not centuries, before we can come up with any more solid prescriptions to save our highest creative selves from brain rot.
  可是到人类能够找出能挽救创造性的自我免于老化的更可靠配方前，在未来的几十或者数百年中市场上肯定将会出现许多冒牌货。
• On the other hand, when confidence is high, and since financial assets are hard to evaluate by those who are buying them, people will and do buy snake oil.
  另一方面，当信心过高时，由于购买金融资产的人难以对这些资产进行估值，人们将愿意并且确实会购买万金油。
• After all, the field of antiaging drugs is littered with compounds that failed to live up to their hype or were hardly more than snake oil.
  毕竟在抗衰老药物的销售中，充满了天花乱坠的虚假宣传，有些干脆不如说是万金油。
• It would throw everything we've done into disrepute, could make us look as if we reinvented snake oil.
  那会使我们所干的一切名誉扫地，可能使我们显得像是在重新搬出蛇油膏那一套玩艺儿。
• Methods to encourage the regrowth of hair have been around since the time of ancient Egypt, when techniques included the application of snake oil or the menstrual blood of virgins.
  促进毛发再生的方法自古埃及以来便已存在，当时人们采用的材料包括蛇油或处女经血等。
• It will produce snake oil.
  它将会生产万金油。