Big fish in a small pond
noun
also, big frog in a little pond. a person who is important in a limited arena; someone overqualified for a position or in relation to colleagues. for example, steve has both a ph.d. and an m.d., yet he’s content with his practice at a rural hospital; he prefers to be a big fish in a little pond. the expression big fish has been slang for an important or influential person since the early 1800s. the addition of in a small pond as a metaphor for an unimportant organization is more recent, as is the subst-tution of frog. another variant is the proverb better a big fish in a little puddle than a little fish in a big puddle.
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