"cruel mistress" meaning in English

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "cruel mistresses",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "cruel mistress (plural cruel mistresses)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1965 December 17, “Snow Job”, in Time Magazine",
          "text": "For bandleaders, society can be a cruel mistress. At debutante parties they receive compliments but not calling cards, at charity balls they take their breaks with their players instead of their patrons […]",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2017 January 2, Chris Okula, “The Kia Stinger Will Be One Hell Of A Used Car”, in Shifting Lanes, retrieved 2021-01-31",
          "text": "Even if you can’t afford a new one, the cruel mistress of depreciation will soon have her way with the Stinger and that’s very good news.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Something which has both significant positive and negative aspects."
      ],
      "id": "en-cruel_mistress-en-noun-sayxoQzP",
      "links": [
        [
          "aspects",
          "aspects"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) Something which has both significant positive and negative aspects."
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "word": "cut both ways"
        }
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "harsh mistress"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "cruel mistress"
}

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "cruel mistresses",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "cruel mistress (plural cruel mistresses)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "cut both ways"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English countable nouns",
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English idioms",
        "English lemmas",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English nouns",
        "English terms with quotations"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1965 December 17, “Snow Job”, in Time Magazine",
          "text": "For bandleaders, society can be a cruel mistress. At debutante parties they receive compliments but not calling cards, at charity balls they take their breaks with their players instead of their patrons […]",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2017 January 2, Chris Okula, “The Kia Stinger Will Be One Hell Of A Used Car”, in Shifting Lanes, retrieved 2021-01-31",
          "text": "Even if you can’t afford a new one, the cruel mistress of depreciation will soon have her way with the Stinger and that’s very good news.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Something which has both significant positive and negative aspects."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "aspects",
          "aspects"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) Something which has both significant positive and negative aspects."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "harsh mistress"
    }
  ],
  "word": "cruel mistress"
}