Napoleonic

adjective

Na·​po·​le·​on·​ic nə-ˌpō-lē-ˈä-nik 

: of, relating to, or resembling Napoleon I: such as

a

: bellicose

The … terrier with the Napoleonic streak was here, lashing out at dogs several times its size whenever one approached …

—Laurence Sheehan

b

: having imperialist or expansionist ambitions

The man behind Formula One's surging popularity is … a Napoleonic figure who effectively took over the wayward sport two decades ago.

—John U. Bacon

Examples of Napoleonic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That year, French propagandist Louis Dubroca, a mouthpiece of the Napoleonic government, published a slanted, factually incorrect biography of Dessalines. — Julia Gaffield, The Conversation, 15 June 2026

In War and Peace, Tolstoy’s concept—among a million other things—was to show how the young people who lived through the Napoleonic invasion went on to lead Russia’s first democratic uprising, the Decembrist Revolt of 1825. — Literary Hub, 2 June 2026

Napoleonic tailoring is reworked through a modern lens, and ruffled necklines and opulent bows overtake more demure details. — Angela Velasquez, Footwear News, 2 June 2026

Things are dialled up in various suites, like a Terrace Suite with a red and black scheme that nods to Napoleonic uniforms and Christian Dior’s Parisian apartment. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1810, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for Napoleonic

• anharmonic
• anionic
• avionic
• catatonic
• cationic
• chorionic
• cosmogonic
• diachronic
• diatonic
• electronic
• embryonic
• excitonic