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big fish in a little pond

big fish in a little pond

Date: Oct 08 2003

Quote

1. Quote - Listen to the quote and guess what the slang means.

“He’s a big fish in a little pond – Chief of Police in a 4 cop town, and, uh, you know, he doesn’t want to go anywhere. I think he thinks he can do no wrong.”
- Denzel Washington, actor, talking about his character in the new movie Out
of Time
.

Definition

1. Definition - Study the definition.

a person who has more skills than are necessary for his/her position, a person who is smarter and more talented than most of the other people around him/her, a person who feels that s/he should be doing something more important with his/her life because s/he has the ability to do so

2. Use - Learn how the slang is used.

You can use “big fish in a little pond” to describe a person whe feels like s/he’s too good for the situation s/he’s in. For example, a person who wants to move to Los Angeles and become a famous actor might feel like a big fish in a small pond is she’s living in a small town in Kansas.
Being a big fish in a small pond is not a bad thing. It’s not an insult to be called a big fish in a small pond. A person who feels like a big fish in a small pond doesn’t necessarily think the situation s/he’s in is a bad situation – s/he just wants something better.

Examples

1. Examples - Hear some example sentences.

””I’ve got to get out of this town. It’s just too small. I’m tired of being a big fish in a small pond. I want to move to a big city like New York or LA.”“

””Jeff has always been a big fish in a little pond when it comes to sports. He’s just so much bigger, faster and more talented than the other kids his age.”“

””I don’t like Mary. She has this attitude like she’s so much smarter than everyone else. It’s like she thinks she’s the big fish in a small pond, which is totally untrue. She’s no better at her job than we are at ours.”“

””Before he moved to Paris, Juan was a big fish in a small pond. Once he got there, he realized that there are a lot of intelligent and talented people in this world.”“

Winners

1. Winners - See who guessed the slang definition correctly.

Someone’s so brainy that the place s/he’s workin’ at doesn’t seem to offer enough to show her/his talent.
by Heather (Bean Town, U.S.)
False sense of importance, of superiority, Winner in a no competition.
by Srikanth (Bangalore, India)
big fish in a little pond = the biggest in the smallest :-). he’s the most important person in a village
by ninoslav (Zagreb, Croatia)
If you’re “a big fish in a little pond”, you must be a big man or the powers that be in a small community.
by yoshi (Tokyo, Japan)
He thinks he is more than he really is.
by Marcia (Sapiranga, Brazil)
like a frog in the little pool. He thinks he know everything in the world.
by siriporn (Bangkok, Thailand)
a person of value in a place where there are not very many experts or skilled people
by Jack (Hangzhou, China)
A big fish in a little pond: A person who is important in only a very limited area or who has influence among only a very small group of people.
by Natalio Gagliardi (Rosario, Santa Fe, Argentina)

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Comments

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miffoo

miffoo

Slovakia

very nice slang

09:41 AM Jan 23 2009 |

sex on the beach

Turkey

hello

02:09 PM Mar 22 2008 |

wilson77

China

Some young guys always thing they are big fish in a little pond. But in fact, most of them need more practise and real time experience for working, for living

09:21 AM Mar 20 2008 |

arkimedes

arkimedes

Colombia

it sense very good when we are the big fish in the little pond but when it isnt this is very bad(for me).

02:01 AM Mar 19 2008 |

arzaga

United States

Big Fish, are people that feel over qualified for the work they are performing.
Oppsite word “Lost” the person does not know what they are doing.
My birthday is April 23, 1951.
I don’t know Chinese or understand Chinese.

01:28 AM Mar 17 2008 |

yueyuezhu

yueyuezhu

China

if i do really hard in my study, then i would be proud to say i am a big fish in a really little pond, or anywhere, without our efforts, anywhere is too big for us.it’s depend on our hard working and also, our attitudes make sense.

05:38 AM Mar 10 2008 |

rameez

rameez

Pakistan

Very Nice and I have increase one more SLANGE (i love slang) In my Vocabulary.

06:48 AM Mar 06 2008 |

JOSEFRANCISCO

Colombia

Sometime get a big fish in a little pond it is a good about ego , bye. Regards.

03:24 PM Jan 31 2008 |

naazia

naazia

Pakistan

my brothers is going to fed up his job and he thinks like a big fish in a little pond.

02:54 PM May 04 2007 |

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