🇪🇸Spanish Source WordCode: ES

gran pez en un pequeño estanque

Pronunciation / Transliteration: ɡɾan peθ en un peˈkeɲo esˈtaŋke

🇬🇧 Direct English Meaning:
Big Fish in a Small Pond/bɪɡ fɪʃ ɪn ə smɔl pɒnd/
nounCEFR C1 (Advanced)Top #15000 frequency
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🇪🇸 Example Sentence in Spanish:

"Es un gran pez en un pequeño estanque en su barrio."

Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As noun
  1. 1

    A person who is prominent or influential in a small community or organization but may not be as significant in a larger context.

    "In his hometown, he was a big fish in a small pond, but when he moved to the city, he realized he was just another face in the crowd."
  2. 2

    An individual who enjoys a sense of superiority or status due to their position in a limited setting.

    "She felt like a big fish in a small pond at her local club, where her achievements were widely recognized."

Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum

Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

The phrase 'big fish in a small pond' is an idiomatic expression that originated in English, with roots tracing back to the early 20th century. It metaphorically describes someone who is important or influential within a limited context, contrasting with the broader world where they may be less significant. The imagery of a large fish thriving in a small body of water highlights the idea of relative importance based on one's environment.

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10 Global Lexicons: How "Big Fish in a Small Pond" is said worldwide

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🇫🇷French → English

gros poisson dans un petit étang

Transliteration: ɡʁo pwa.sɔ̃ dɑ̃ ɛ̃ pə.ti e.tɑ̃

"Il est un gros poisson dans un petit étang dans sa ville."

🇩🇪German → English

großer Fisch in einem kleinen Teich

Transliteration: ˈɡʁoːsɐ fɪʃ ɪn ˈaɪ̯nəm ˈklaɪ̯nən taɪ̯ç

"Er ist ein großer Fisch in einem kleinen Teich in seiner Stadt."

🇮🇹Italian → English

grande pesce in uno stagno piccolo

Transliteration: ˈɡrande ˈpeʃʃe in ˈuno ˈstaɲo ˈpikolo

"È un grande pesce in uno stagno piccolo nella sua comunità."

🇪🇸Spanish → English

gran pez en un pequeño estanque

Transliteration: ɡɾan peθ en un peˈkeɲo esˈtaŋke

"Es un gran pez en un pequeño estanque en su barrio."

🇵🇹Portuguese → English

grande peixe em um pequeno lago

Transliteration: ˈɡɾɐ̃dʒi ˈpejʃi ẽũ pɛˈkenu ˈlaɡu

"Ele é um grande peixe em um pequeno lago na sua cidade."

🇮🇳Hindi → English

छोटे तालाब में बड़ा मछली

Transliteration: chhote talaab mein bada machhli

"वह अपने छोटे शहर में बड़ा मछली है।"

🇨🇳Chinese → English

小池塘里的大鱼

Transliteration: xiǎo chítáng lǐ de dàyú

"在他的小镇上,他是小池塘里的大鱼。"

🇰🇷Korean → English

작은 연못의 큰 물고기

Transliteration: jageun yeonmot-ui keun mulgogi

"그는 작은 마을에서 큰 물고기입니다."

🇯🇵Japanese → English

小さな池の大きな魚

Transliteration: chīsana ike no ōkina sakana

"彼は小さな町で大きな魚です。"

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