Jump To:

• Big Dipper
  Big Dipper

  noun

  the group of seven bright stars in Ursa Major resembling a dipper in outline.
• big dipper
  big dipper

  noun

  (in amusement parks) a narrow railway with open carriages that run swiftly over a route of sharp curves and steep inclines

Big Dipper

American  

noun

Astronomy.

1. the group of seven bright stars in Ursa Major resembling a dipper in outline.

---

big dipper ¹ British  

noun

1. Also called: roller coaster.  (in amusement parks) a narrow railway with open carriages that run swiftly over a route of sharp curves and steep inclines

---

Big Dipper ² British  

noun

1. the US and Canadian name for Plough

---

Big Dipper Scientific  

1. An asterism composed of seven stars in the constellation Ursa Major. Four stars form the bowl and three form the handle in the outline of a dipper.

---

Big Dipper Cultural  

1. A constellation in the northern sky. The two stars on the far end of the bowl of the dipper point toward the North Star. The Big Dipper is part of the constellation Ursa Major (the Great Bear).

---

Etymology

Origin of Big Dipper

First recorded in 1865–70

Compare meaning

How does big-dipper compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Big Dipper vs. Little Dipper

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Big Dipper big dipper

Another favorite is "The Big Dipper," my take on a French Dip.

From Salon ● May 28, 2024

Elusive stars began to emerge, dappling the stretches of sky that often look empty between streaks of red and green aircraft lights and astronomical divas like the North Star or Big Dipper.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2023

After the Big Dipper was expanded in 1934, Hollywood movie star Marlene Dietrich went for a ride.

From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2023

The easily identifiable Big Dipper represents the bear’s rear torso and tail, with the other stars of the constellation mapping out its long nose and legs.

From National Geographic ● Aug. 23, 2023

Mother helped Nat find the North Star, and told him how the Big Dipper swung around it, and how to tell time by the Dipper.

From "Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham

Melting permafrost is buckling roads into potentially deadly big dipper rollercoasters, as well as threatening to dislodge doses of locked-up mercury.

From The Guardian ● Apr. 21, 2018

Start at dusk in June to see big dipper fireflies and the pink mountains.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2018

Now it’s like being on a big dipper with no safety belt, for about five years.

From The Guardian ● Nov. 12, 2016

In the Mid-Atlantic, you’re more likely to see P. pyralis, the big dipper firefly, named for its undulating flight pattern.

From Washington Post ● Jul. 5, 2016

She deserves a fair shake and, by the big dipper, she's goin' to have it!

From Cy Whittaker's Place by Joseph Crosby Lincoln