top dog

noun

1. a person, group, or nation that has acquired a position of highest authority.

2. the winner of a competition or rivalry; champion.

   He was determined to be top dog at the swimming meet.

3. Animal Behavior.,  the alpha male or alpha female in a dominance hierarchy.

top dog

noun

1. informal,  the leader or chief of a group

Other Word Forms

• top-dog adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of top dog¹

First recorded in 1885–1900

Idioms and Phrases

see top banana.

Related Words

• administrator 
• agent 
• bureaucrat 
• civil servant 
• commissioner 
• director 
• executive 
• leader 
• manager 
• minister 
• officer 
• representative 
• secretary