Big Apple
Britishnoun
Etymology
Origin of Big Apple
C20: probably from US jazzmen's earlier use to mean any big, esp northern, city; of obscure origin
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
There are plenty of fantasies that feel-good television shows set in the Big Apple sell.
From Salon • Jun. 21, 2026
Typically the preserve of the city's "great and good," leftist Mamdani is giving away 600 tickets for the ceremony at City Hall to ordinary Big Apple residents.
From Barron's • Jun. 18, 2026
While in the Big Apple, Island's boss asked Taylor to look after a reggae band who were coming to town.
From BBC • Jun. 12, 2026
There are certainly New York firms that are sticking to their Big Apple strategy.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 1, 2026
The protest in New York was on at the moment, but let me tell you, it didn’t look like a love train chugging through the Big Apple.
From "Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet" by Joanne Proulx
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
