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Encyclopedic overview
A paper tiger with a U.S. flag, symbolizing The United States (China Pictorial, August 1950 issue)
"Paper tiger" is a calque of the Chinese phrase zhǐlǎohǔ (simplified Chinese: 纸老虎; traditional Chinese: 紙老虎). The term refers to something or someone that claims or appears to be powerful or threatening but is actually ineffectual and unable to withstand challenge.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “paper tiger” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.