definitions

large

[ lahrj ]
/ lɑrdʒ /
||
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR large ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, larg·er, larg·est.

noun

Music. the longest note in mensural notation.
Obsolete. generosity; bounty.

adverb

Nautical. with the wind free or abaft the beam so that all sails draw fully.

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RELATED WORDS

relaxed, sloppy, lax, easy, baggy, detached, independent, clear, loose, able, unrestricted, open, unfettered, limp, hanging, escaped, floating, unlocked, separate, disconnected

Nearby words

laree, lares, lares and penates, largactil, largando, large, large as life, large black, large calorie, large cane, large cell carcinoma

Idioms

    at large,
    1. free from restraint or confinement; at liberty: The murderer is still at large.
    2. to a considerable extent; at length: to treat a subject at large.
    3. as a whole; in general: the country at large.
    4. Also at-large. representing the whole of a state, district, or body rather than one division or part of it: a delegate at large.
    5. Also at-large. having a general, as opposed to a specific, role in an organization or project: She’s the magazine’s editor-at-large.
    in large, on a large scale; from a broad point of view: a problem seen in large.Also in the large.

Origin of large

1125–75; Middle English < Old French < Latin larga, feminine of largus ample, generous

Related forms

large·ness, nouno·ver·large, adjectiveul·tra·large, adjectiveun·large, adjective

Can be confused

large largess
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for at large

large

/ (lɑːdʒ) /

adjective

noun

at large
  1. (esp of a dangerous criminal or wild animal) free; not confined
  2. roaming freely, as in a foreign country
  3. as a whole; in general
  4. in full detail; exhaustively
  5. ambassador-at-large See ambassador (def. 4)
in large or in the large as a totality or on a broad scale

adverb

Derived Forms

largeness, noun

Word Origin for large

C12 (originally: generous): via Old French from Latin largus ample, abundant
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Culture definitions for at large

at large

A descriptive term for the election of public officials by an entire governmental unit rather than by subdivisions of the unit. For example, a delegate at large does not represent any specific district or locale, but speaks instead for a much wider group of people.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Idioms and Phrases with at large (1 of 2)

at large

1

Free, unconfined, especially not confined in prison, as in To our distress, the housebreakers were still at large. [1300s]

2

At length, fully; also, as a whole, in general. For example, The chairman talked at large about the company's plans for the coming year, or, as Shakespeare wrote in Love's Labour's Lost (1:1): “So to the laws at large I write my name” (that is, I uphold the laws in general). This usage is somewhat less common. [1400s]

3

Elected to represent an entire group of voters rather than those in a particular district or other segment—for example, alderman at large, representing all the wards of a city instead of just one, or delegate at large to a labor union convention. [Mid-1700s]

Idioms and Phrases with at large (2 of 2)

large

see at large; big (large) as life; by and large; cog in the (a large) wheel; in some (large) measure; loom large; writ large.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.