noun
napoleon
A small person regarded as domineering or overly ambitious.
The memoir calls the overbearing manager a little napoleon.
Etymology
The comparison invokes Napoleon as a figure of dominating ambition. Applied to a small person, it also draws on his popular reputation for short stature, rather than establishing that reputation as historical fact.
More examples
- He behaved like a napoleon whenever given authority.
- She mocked the office napoleon’s constant orders.
- The character is a petty napoleon with grand ambitions.
Forms
napoleon · napoleons
Similar words
- petty tyrant
- The usual critical description.
- little dictator
- A similarly disparaging comparison.