sleeping giant
Americannoun
-
someone or something whose strength has not been fully demonstrated or recognized but that, once provoked, will respond with unexpected force and extraordinary power.
The Japanese admiral, anticipating the U.S. reaction to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, allegedly said, “I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant.”
-
Ecology. an environmental condition or circumstance that has the potential for drastic consequences to one or more of the earth’s life systems.
The rapidly melting glaciers of eastern Antarctica represent some of our planet’s most dramatic sleeping giants.
Etymology
Origin of sleeping giant
First recorded in 1915–20
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Europe was "a giant, but a sleeping giant" that needed waking up.
From BBC • Jan. 28, 2026
They saw a sleeping giant waiting to be unleashed.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 21, 2025
Wisconsin had awoken a sleeping giant on UCLA’s roster that late January day at Pauley Pavilion.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 14, 2025
“Suddenly,” she added, “the sleeping giant has awaked.”
From New York Times • Jul. 14, 2023
Danny had hoped the bricks turned into a secret doorway like the sleeping giant, but no matter how hard they tried, it wouldn’t give.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
