耀武扬威 (yào wǔ yáng wēi) — to flaunt one's strength or power; to show off one's might (usually in a boastful or intimidating way)

Definition

Examples

• 他刚当上经理就在同事面前耀武扬威，大家都很反感。
  Tā gāng dāng shàng jīng lǐ jiù zài tóng shì miàn qián yào wǔ yáng wēi, dà jiā dōu hěn fǎn gǎn.
  As soon as he became manager, he started flaunting his power in front of his colleagues, and everyone found it off-putting.
• 那个士兵在村里耀武扬威，欺负老百姓，被长官训斥了。
  Nà ge shì bīng zài cūn lǐ yào wǔ yáng wēi, qī fu lǎo bǎi xìng, bèi zhǎng guān xùn chì le.
  That soldier was throwing his weight around in the village, bullying the locals, and got reprimanded by his superior.
• 别以为有几个钱就可以耀武扬威，做人要低调。
  Bié yǐ wéi yǒu jǐ gè qián jiù kě yǐ yào wǔ yáng wēi, zuò rén yào dī diào.
  Don't think you can show off your wealth and act arrogantly just because you have some money; one should be humble.