young gun

British

noun

an up-and-coming young man, esp one considered as being assertive and confident

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

That still leaves a chasm at the top with young gun Sam Konstas and the more experienced Matt Renshaw seen as leading the race.

From Barron's

But do not cry for the former young gun.

From Seattle Times

In the early 1950s, a cohort of ambitious young gun capitalists in the United States saw opportunity in Europe’s war trash.

From Slate

The 36-year-old Serbian had been indestructible on Wimbledon's Centre Court for a decade but on Sunday he finally met his match as he ran out of ideas to stop young gun Alcaraz from hurtling towards the title.

From Reuters

We caught a glimpse of this possibility last year when President Biden signed the most sweeping gun violence bill in decades, strengthening background checks for young gun buyers, restricting gun ownership for domestic violence offenders and providing grants for agencies trying to enforce red-flag laws.

From Los Angeles Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023