tin-pot

Or tin·pot

[tin-pot]

adjective

1. inferior; paltry; shoddy.

   The tin-pot farce lasted only three performances before closing.

2. of minor importance or significance.

   a tin-pot dictator, trying to look like a statesman.

Word History and Origins

Origin of tin-pot¹

First recorded in 1835–45; tin ( def. ) (from the believed inferior quality of a tin pot) + pot ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

He’s 80% charisma, 20% peacock, who takes his fashion cues from tin-pot dictators and Elton John.

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Rather than a rant of an accused criminal, his followers interpret what he says as the rallying cry of a leader fighting “tin-pot dictators,” as he angrily states, while in reality it is Trump who actually aspires to become a dictator.

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They would trade our Republic for a tin-pot dictatorship in a heartbeat if it meant an everlasting grip on power.

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For example, when he writes of people who are charging him with crimes, and people trying to uphold democracy, that “they would trade our Republic for a tin-pot dictatorship in a heartbeat if it meant an everlasting grip on power,” he has perfectly described himself.

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To them, transforming America into a Third World tin-pot dictatorship is just part of the plan.

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