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View synonyms for big

big

1

[ big ]

adjective

, big·ger, big·gest.
  1. large, as in size, height, width, or amount:

    a big house; a big quantity.

    Synonyms: extensive, voluminous, capacious, massive, bulky, immense, huge

    Antonyms: little

  2. of major concern, importance, gravity, or the like:

    a big problem.

  3. outstanding for a specified quality:

    a big liar; a big success.

  4. important, as in influence, standing, or wealth:

    a big man in his field.

    Synonyms: consequential

  5. big enough to know better.

  6. my big sister.

  7. doing business or conducted on a large scale; major in size or importance:

    big government.

  8. consisting of the largest or most influential companies in an industry:

    Big steel wants to lower prices, but the smaller mills don't.

  9. Informal. known or used widely; popular:

    Nouvelle cuisine became big in the 1970s.

  10. big enough to forgive.

  11. a big talker.

  12. a big voice.

  13. (of clothing or a clothing design) made of or distinguished by voluminous fabric that is loosely or softly shaped and fitted:

    a big shirt; the big look.

  14. (of a wine) having more than average flavor, body, and alcoholic content.
  15. filled; brimming:

    eyes big with tears.

  16. Chiefly South Midland and Southern U.S. pregnant 1( def 1 ).
  17. Obsolete. very strong; powerful.


adverb

  1. Informal. boastfully; pretentiously:

    to act big; to talk big.

  2. Informal. with great success; successfully:

    to go over big.

noun

  1. the bigs, Sports Slang. the highest level of professional competition, as the major leagues in baseball.

big

2
or bigg

[ big ]

verb (used with object)

, British Dialect.
, bigged, big·ging.
  1. to build.

big

1

/ bɪɡ /

verb

  1. to build
  2. to excavate (earth) into a pile
“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

2

/ bɪɡ /

adjective

  1. of great or considerable size, height, weight, number, power, or capacity
  2. having great significance; important

    a big decision

  3. important through having power, influence, wealth, authority, etc

    the big four banks

  4. (intensifier usually qualifying something undesirable)

    a big dope

  5. informal.
    considerable in extent or intensity (esp in the phrase in a big way )
    1. elder

      my big brother

    2. grown-up

      when you're big, you can stay up later

    1. generous; magnanimous

      that's very big of you

    2. ( in combination )

      big-hearted

  6. often foll by with brimming; full

    my heart is big with sadness

  7. extravagant; boastful

    he's full of big talk

  8. (of wine) full-bodied, with a strong aroma and flavour
  9. too big for one's boots or too big for one's breeches
    conceited; unduly self-confident
  10. in an advanced stage of pregnancy (esp in the phrase big with child )
  11. big on informal.
    enthusiastic about

    that company is big on research

“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

adverb

  1. boastfully; pretentiously (esp in the phrase talk big )
  2. in an exceptional way; well

    his talk went over big with the audience

  3. on a grand scale (esp in the phrase think big )
“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
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Derived Forms

  • ˈbiggish, adjective
  • ˈbigness, noun
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Other Words From

  • biggish adjective
  • bigly adverb adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of big1

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English big(ge), beg(ge); of unknown origin

Origin of big2

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English biggen, beggen, buggen, originally, “to inhabit, reside,” from Old Norse byggja, byggva “to inhabit, settle,” cognate with Old English bū(i)an, German bauen “to build, erect”
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Word History and Origins

Origin of big1

from Old Norse byggja ; related to Old English būian to inhabit

Origin of big2

C13: perhaps of Scandinavian origin; compare Norwegian dialect bugge big man
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. be big on, to have a special liking or enthusiasm for:

    Mother is big on family get-togethers.

  2. big with child. great ( def 23 ).

More idioms and phrases containing big

  • go over big
  • great (big) guns
  • hit it big
  • in a big way
  • little frog in a big pond
  • make a federal case (big deal)
  • talk big
  • think big
  • too big for one's breeches
  • what's the (big) idea
  • bigger
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Example Sentences

Delivering that for the team has put the biggest smile possible on everyone's face.

From BBC

And as ever, a big part of that growth means taking the audience along with her.

From Salon

Arteta said the comparisons with Stoke were a "big compliment" and his tactics paid off once again when Saliba tapped home the equaliser.

From BBC

"I think it was too big to rig," he said.

From Salon

"Splitting the G" is a trend whereby drinkers try take a big enough first swig of Guinness so that the stout comes to halfway down the "G" in the word "Guinness" on pint glass.

From BBC

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More About Big

What is a basic definition of big?

Big describes something that is large in height, weight, size, or amount. Big can also describe something that is significant or, informally, something that is popular. Big has many other senses as an adjective and a few as an adverb and a noun.

Big can describe things that are tall, wide, massive, or plentiful. It’s a synonym of words such as large, great, and huge, describing something as being notably high in number or scale in some way.

  • Real-life examples: The Grand Canyon is a big hole in the ground. Jupiter is a big planet. You would need a big box to hold 300 books. Skyscrapers are big buildings.
  • Used in a sentence: The restaurant brought out a big table to seat all 30 of us.

Big also describes something that is very important, worrisome, alarming, influential, or similarly worthy of notice.

  • Real-life examples: Jumping out of a plane without a parachute is a big mistake. A comet hitting Earth would be a big issue. The discovery of life on Mars would be big news.
  • Used in a sentence: The mold in our house turned into a big problem when we found out it was toxic.

Big is used informally to mean that something is popular or widely known.

  • Real-life examples: Disco was big in the 1970s. The internet started to become big in the 1990s when computers became affordable and connection speeds improved.
  • Used in a sentence: The actor was big 10 years ago but now nobody knows who he is.

Where does big come from?

The first records of big come from around 1250. It comes from the Middle English big(ge), but any earlier origin is unknown.

Did you know … ?

What are some other forms related to big?

What are some synonyms for big?

What are some words that share a root or word element with big

What are some words that often get used in discussing big?

How is big used in real life?

Big is a very common word that is most often used to describe something as being large in some way.

 

 

Try using big!

Is big used correctly in the following sentence?

The dog was so big that my friend thought it was a small horse.

More About Big

What is a basic definition of big?

Big describes something that is large in height, weight, size, or amount. Big can also describe something that is significant or, informally, something that is popular. Big has many other senses as an adjective and a few as an adverb and a noun.

Big can describe things that are tall, wide, massive, or plentiful. It’s a synonym of words such as large, great, and huge, describing something as being notably high in number or scale in some way.

  • Real-life examples: The Grand Canyon is a big hole in the ground. Jupiter is a big planet. You would need a big box to hold 300 books. Skyscrapers are big buildings.
  • Used in a sentence: The restaurant brought out a big table to seat all 30 of us. 

Big also describes something that is very important, worrisome, alarming, influential, or similarly worthy of notice.

  • Real-life examples: Jumping out of a plane without a parachute is a big mistake. A comet hitting Earth would be a big issue. The discovery of life on Mars would be big news.
  • Used in a sentence: The mold in our house turned into a big problem when we found out it was toxic. 

Big is used informally to mean that something is popular or widely known.

  • Real-life examples: Disco was big in the 1970s. The internet started to become big in the 1990s when computers became affordable and connection speeds improved.
  • Used in a sentence: The actor was big 10 years ago but now nobody knows who he is. 

Where does big come from?

The first records of big come from around 1250. It comes from the Middle English big(ge), but any earlier origin is unknown.

Did you know … ?

What are some other forms related to big?

What are some synonyms for big?

What are some words that share a root or word element with big

What are some words that often get used in discussing big?

How is big used in real life?

Big is a very common word that is most often used to describe something as being large in some way.

Try using big!

Is big used correctly in the following sentence?

The dog was so big that my friend thought it was a small horse. 

When To Use

What are other ways to say big?

Something that is big is large in size, height, width, or amount. How is big different from great and large? Find out on Thesaurus.com. 

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.

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