我们中文里如果说别人是狗的话，是很难听的，别人听到会觉得受到侮辱，但是在英文中如果听到别人说你是“top dog”可千万不要骂回去，人家这其实是在夸你，那我们怎么用这个习语来称赞别人呢？让Joy and Chris来解释一下吧！

C: Hi guys. I’m Chris.
 
J: And I’m Joy. Our idiom for today is: top dog. It’s referring to a person or a group that is more powerful than others and has the most authority. You can use it like this:
I was the top dog. / She is the top dog. / They are gonna be the top dog.
 
C: From the literal meaning, we can see that it is the dog on top. So obviously, it’s talking about power or social level. If you meet someone very high up in your company, like your CEO, you can say that he’s the top dog of the company. Or maybe you have a friend. He is very ambitious and he always tells you about his goal of climbing the corporate ladder. You can say that he’s really determined to be the top dog of the corporation. There is also a word that has the exact opposite meaning which is: underdog. It’s talking about the person that has no money or power and is unlikely to win or succeed. For example: He’s always been the underdog in the family. Let’s take a look at a conversation:

 

 
J: Wow, did you notice that they are opening another Starbucks in the neighborhood?
 
C: Yeah, I heard about that. Well, Starbucks is the top dog when it comes to coffee shops. It’s not surprising that they are buying up all the good locations.
 

 

J: Are you trying to be the top dog in your industry? Learning English can be essential!
 
C: Exactly. So don’t forget to follow our channel every day and share it with people you know! Talk to you next time! Bye!

climbing the corporate ladder:   攀登职场阶梯