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Synonyms

big wheel

American  

noun

Informal.
  1. an influential or important person.

    a big wheel in business.


big wheel British  

noun

  1. another name for a Ferris wheel

  2. informal an important person

"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

big wheel Idioms  
  1. see under big cheese.


Etymology

Origin of big wheel

First recorded in 1905–10

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.

See Examples For:

On Friday, viewers will see him give the big wheel his final spin, capping one of the most impressive runs in television history — and the longest ever for a game show host.

From New York Times Jun. 7, 2024

Visitors also enjoyed fairground rides, a big wheel, and live music from DJs performing in Molly's Bar on the festival site.

From BBC Jul. 30, 2022

Paramedics loaded the injured hiker into a big wheel stretcher and safely got him down the rest of the trail.

From Washington Times Feb. 7, 2021

Kives’s road to becoming a big wheel in the Democratic money machine began in June 2001, when he was an undergraduate at Stanford.

From The Guardian Mar. 3, 2020

I suggested that if we put the food on a big wheel that could spin around, everybody could just take what they wanted without having to reach across the table.

From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman

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