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tall poppy

noun

Etymology

A metaphor of something conspicuous that should be lopped. First use appears c. 1710.

Definitions

  1. A conspicuously successful person, especially one who attracts envious hostility.

    • Others have emphasised how it standardised and enforced social mores, cutting down ‘tall poppies’ and shirking those whose race, political beliefs, aspirations – or sexual proclivities – did not or could not bow to peer pressure.

  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically

    Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see tall, poppy.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for tall poppy. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA