sleeping giant

American  

[slee-ping jahy-uhnt] / ˈsli pɪŋ ˈdʒaɪ ənt /

noun

1. 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.”

2. 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.

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Etymology

Origin of sleeping giant

First recorded in 1915–20

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sleeping giant

Sumner called the guarantee clause “a sleeping giant in the Constitution, never until this war awakened,” that “now comes forward with a giant’s power.”

From Slate ● Jun. 3, 2026

"We look at Lincoln City as a sleeping giant, is that fair?"

From BBC ● Apr. 6, 2026

As markets such as Brazil and Europe open up and reimbursement improves, investors could realize that the global opportunity for GLP-1s might be the real sleeping giant in Lilly’s story.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 18, 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

And the yew tree hovering over the graveyard like a sleeping giant.

From "A Monster Calls" by Patrick Ness