whammy

Universal Words noun (plural whammies) (informal) an unpleasant situation or event that causes problems for sb/sth: With this government we've had a double whammy of tax increases and benefit cuts. ORIGIN From the 1950s American cartoon Li'l Abner, in which one of the characters could shoot a whammy (put a curse on sb) by pointing a finger with one eye open, or a double whammy with both eyes open.