bighead

American  

[big-hed, -hed] / ˈbɪgˈhɛd, -ˌhɛd /

noun

1. Informal. an excessive estimate of one's importance; conceit.

2. Veterinary Pathology.

   1. an inflammatory swelling of the tissues of the head heads of sheep, caused by the anaerobic bacillus Clostridium novyi.

   2. enlargement of the head heads and jawbones of horses resulting from nutritional hyperthyroidism.

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bighead British  

/ ˈbɪɡˌhɛd /

noun

1. informal a conceited person

2. informal conceit; egotism

3. vet science

   1. an abnormal bulging or increase in the size of an animal's skull, as from osteomalacia

   2. any of various diseases of sheep characterized by swelling of the head, esp any caused by infection with Clostridium bacteria

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Other Word Forms

• bigheaded adjective
• bigheadedly adverb
• bigheadedness noun

Etymology

Origin of bighead

An Americanism dating back to 1795–1805; big ¹ + head

Example Sentences

His medley of El Apagón and Después De La Playa was enhanced with pyrotechnics, dozens of dancers and a troop of cabezudos, the "bighead" puppets that march down the streets of San Juan every January.

From BBC • Feb. 5, 2023

It’s an abbreviated wordplay on “copious” — a reference to the booming populations of bighead, silver, grass and black carp in the U.S. heartland.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 22, 2022

Scientists' greatest concern for the Great Lakes is bighead and silver carp, both of which were imported from Asia for aquaculture but escaped into the Mississippi River system during floods and through accidental releases.

From Scientific American • Jul. 8, 2020

The moniker includes four fish imported from China starting in the 1960s — grass carp, black carp, silver carp, and bighead carp.

From Salon • Mar. 15, 2020

On some farms and in some stables bighead is quite prevalent, a number of cases following one after another.

From Special Report on Diseases of the Horse by Michener, Charles B.