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big

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also:BIG

English

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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Inherited fromNorthern Middle Englishbig,bigge(“powerful, strong”), possibly from a dialect ofOld Norse. Ultimately perhaps a derivative ofProto-Germanic*bugja-(“swollen up, thick”), fromProto-Indo-European*bʰew-,*bu-(“to swell”),[1] in which casebig would be related tobogey,bugbear, andbug.

Compare dialectalNorwegianbugge(“great man”),Low GermanBögge,Boggelmann.

Adjective

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big (comparativebigger,superlativebiggest)

  1. Of great size,large.
    Synonyms:ample,huge,large,sizeable,stour,jumbo,massive;see alsoThesaurus:large
    Antonyms:little,small,tiny,minuscule,miniature,minute
    Elephants arebig animals, and they eat a lot.
    • 1909,Archibald Marshall [pseudonym; Arthur Hammond Marshall], chapter III, inThe Squire’s Daughter, New York, N.Y.:Dodd, Mead and Company, published1919,→OCLC:
      Thebighouses, and there are agoodmany ofthem, lie for themostpart in what may be called bycourtesy thevalleys. You catch aglimpse of themsometimes at a littledistance from the [railway] line, […], with theircourt offarm andchurch andclusteredvillage, in dignified seclusion.
    • 2013 July 6, “The rise of smart beta”, inThe Economist, volume408, number8843, page68:
      Investors face a quandary. Cash offers a return of virtually zero in many developed countries; government-bond yields may have risen in recent weeks but they are still unattractive. Equities have suffered twobig bear markets since 2000 and are wobbling again. It is hardly surprising that pension funds, insurers and endowments are searching for new sources of return.
    1. (informal)Fat.
      Synonyms:chubby,plus-size,rotund;see alsoThesaurus:overweight
      Gosh, she isbig!
  2. (sometimes figurative) Large with young;pregnant;swelling; ready to give birth or produce.
    Synonyms:full,great,heavy;see alsoThesaurus:pregnant
    She wasbig with child.
  3. (informal)Well-endowed; with a desired body part notably large.
    1. Specifically,big-breasted.
      Synonyms:busty,macromastic,stacked;see alsoThesaurus:busty
    2. Having a largepenis.
      I'm the shortest man on the team but in the gym shower everyone can see that I'm also thebiggest.
    3. Having largemuscles, especially visible ones such as the chest and arm muscles.
      I've been lifting weights for a full year now, but I'm finally gettingbig.
  4. (informal)Adult; (of a child) older.
    Synonyms:adult,fully grown,grown up;see alsoThesaurus:full-grown
    Antonyms:little,young
    • 1931,Robert L. May,Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer, Montgomery Ward (publisher), draft:
      By midnight, however, the last light had fled / For evenbig people have then gone to bed[.]
    • 1998 April 12, Tom Armstrong,Marvin (comic):
      Uh oh ... that looks like one of those things thebig people don't want us to touch, Marvin!
    Kids should get help frombig people if they want to use the kitchen.
    We were just playing, and then somebig kids came and chased us away.
    She did it all on her own like abig girl.
    1. (informal, slang, rare, of someone's age)Old,mature.Used to imply that someone is too old for something, or acting immaturely.
      • 2020, Candice Carty-Williams,Notting Hill Carnival:
        I don't think so, if you're shouting at people across the playground at yourbig age.
  6. (informal)Mature,conscientious,principled;generous. [withof‘someone’]
    That's verybig of you; thank you!
    I tried to be thebigger person and just let it go, but I couldn't help myself.
    • 2011, Joe Pieri,The Big Men,→ISBN:
      So the bloke says, 'Fine, that's realbig of you, much appreciated,' and off he goes with Big John back to Ferrari's.
  7. (informal)Important orsignificant.
    Synonyms:essential,paramount,weighty;see alsoThesaurus:important
    What's sobig about that? I do it all the time.
    • 1909,Archibald Marshall [pseudonym; Arthur Hammond Marshall], chapter II, inThe Squire’s Daughter, New York, N.Y.:Dodd, Mead and Company, published1919,→OCLC:
      "I was dragged up at the workhouse school till I was twelve. Then I ran away and sold papers in the streets, and anything else that I could pick up a few coppers by—except steal. I never did that. I always made up my mind I'd be abig man some day, and—I'm glad I didn't steal."
    • 2007 September 4, John Berg, “Time on the Greens Beats Time at the Gate”, inThe New York Times‎[1]:
      The great game of golf offered an antidote to the inevitable dead space — blocks of difficult-to-use hours, pre- and postflight — that are one of business travel’sbiggest drags.
    • 2011 October 29, Neil Johnston, “Norwich 3-3 Blackburn”, inBBC Sport:
      It proved abig miss as Hoilett produced a sublime finish into the top corner of the net from 20 yards after evading a couple of challenges in first-half stoppage time.
    • 2023 January 25, Cem Davis tells Nick Brodrick, “A warm 'Waterloo family' welcome”, inRAIL, number975, page38:
      "It's not about having a catchy strap line, it's about 'why do I come to work every day?' Am I just here to go 'your train is over there'? Or am I here to really influence that person's journey and therefore the perception of the organisation we're working for? There is abigger picture to this - and that ultimately is what will keep people using our service."
  8. Popular.
    Synonyms:all the rage,in demand,well liked
    That style is verybig right now in Europe, especially among teenagers.
    • 1984, “Big in Japan”, inForever Young, performed by Alphaville:
      Big in Japan, alright, pay then I'll sleep by your side / Things are easy when you'rebig in Japan
  9. (of a city)Populous.
  10. (informal)Used as an intensifier, especially of negative-valence nouns
    You are abig liar.  Why are you in such abig hurry?
    • 1918, Michael Williams,The Book of the High Romance: A Spiritual Autobiography, page41:
      The little suggestions of look and tone; the easy fibs andbigger lies; the tricks of persuasion, the onleading wiles — all these I could not master.
    • 2007 August 8, Tom Armstrong,Marvin (comic):
      Why is it whenever I'm in abig hurry he's always in abig slow?
  11. (of an industry or other field, or institution(s) therein; often capitalized; sometimes humorous) Operating on a largescale, especially if therefore havingundue orsinisterinfluence.
    Big Tech,Big Steel ―large or influential tech or steel companies
    Big Science ―science performed by large teams, and of large scope, with government or corporate funding
    There were concerns about the ethics ofbig pharma.
    Why are you so enthusiastic about putting cantaloupe in your smoothie? DidBig Melon buy you off? [humorous]
    • 2019 April 25, Samanth Subramanian, “Hand dryers v paper towels: the surprisingly dirty fight for the right to dry your hands”, inThe Guardian‎[2]:
      After the Airblade’s launch, a battle began to boil, pitting the dryer industry against the world’s most powerful hand-drying lobby:Big Towel.
    • 2020 July 28, “Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google Prepare for Their ‘Big Tobacco Moment’”, inNew York Times‎[3]:
      “The C.E.O.s don’t want to be testifying. Even having this collective hearing creates a sense of quasi-guilt just because of who else has gotten called in like this —Big Pharma,Big Tobacco,Big Banks,” said Paul Gallant, a tech policy analyst at the investment firm Cowen. “That’s not a crowd they want to be associated with.”
  12. (informal)Enthusiastic (about).[withon‘someone/something’]
    Synonyms:fanatical,mad,worked up;see alsoThesaurus:enthusiastic
    • 2019 July 2, Louise Taylor, “Alex Morgan heads USA past England into Women’s World Cup final”, inThe Guardian‎[4]:
      Neville isbig on standing by his principles and he deserves plaudits for acknowledging he got his starting system wrong, reverting to 4-2-3-1 and introducing Kirby in the No 10 role.
    I'm notbig on the idea, but if you want to go ahead with it, I won't stop you.
Derived terms
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Translations
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of a great size—see alsolarge
adult
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions atWiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Adverb

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big (comparativebigger,superlativebiggest)

  1. In aloud manner.
  2. In a boasting manner.
    He's always talkingbig, but he never delivers.
  3. In a large amount or to a large extent.
    Synonyms:greatly,hugely,largely,massively;bigly(usually humorous and nonstandard)
    He wonbig betting on the croquet championship.
    Don't miss our November sale — it's your last chance to savebig before Christmas!
    1. (informal)(modifying a preposition)
      I've always beenbig into sport, but I'm especiallybig into football.
  4. On a large scale, expansively.
    You've got to thinkbig to succeed at Amalgamated Plumbing.
    • 1934,Agatha Christie, chapter 3, inMurder on the Orient Express, London: HarperCollins, published2017, page25:
      'You've got to put it overbig,' he was saying in a loud nasal voice.
  5. (colloquial) Hard; with great force.
    He hit himbig and the guy just crumpled.

Noun

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big (pluralbigs)

  1. Someone or something that is large in stature
    • 2019,Derrick Rose, Sam Smith,I'll Show You:
      You could throw out everything else, but I had the speed to split double-teams. Like, go at double-teams numerous times in a possession, on consecutive possessions where I'm testing your endurance, yourbigs.
  2. An important or powerful person; a celebrity; abig name.
    Synonym:big shot
  3. (in theplural) Thebig leagues,big time.
    Synonym:big leagues
    • 2004 June 23, Michelle Boorstein, “Ballclub’s Pullout Caps Va. Town’s Run of Woes; Struggling Martinsville No Longer Celebrates Its Boys of Summer”, inWashington Post:
      In the Appalachian League, where Cal Ripken once played in Bluefield, W.Va., a ballplayer's chances of making it to thebigs are less than one in six.
  4. (universityslang) An initiated member of asorority orfraternity who acts as a mentor to a new member (thelittle).
    • 2018, Kelly Ann Gonzales,Through an Opaque Window:
      He was there the night of Cristoph's party. All the littles were assigned to theirbigs. Ian and Christoph had rushed the same fraternity. When they became upperclassmen, they both ended up on the board.
    • 2019 April 1, Audrey Steinkamp, “Sororities pair new members with "bigs"”, inYale Daily News‎[5]:
      She added that the relationship betweenbigs and littles is "what each pair makes of it," and that a lot of the pairs often get dinner together and become close friends.
    • 2022 September 27, Shreya Varrier, “Gamma Rho Lambda provides LGBTQIA+ community in greek life”, inIowa State Daily‎[6]:
      Some traditions of the chapter include lineages withbigs and littles, receiving of paddles from abig, and a national stroll, Wolsch-Gallia said.
  5. (BDSM, ABDL) The participant inageplay who acts out theolderrole.
    Antonym:little

Etymology 2

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FromMiddle Englishbiggen,byggen, fromOld Norsebyggja,byggva(“to build, dwell in, inhabit”), a secondary form ofOld Norsebúa(“to dwell”), related toOld Englishbūan(“to dwell”). Cognate withDanishbygge,Swedishbygga.

Verb

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big (third-person singular simple presentbigs,present participlebigging,simple past and past participlebigged)

  1. (transitive, archaic, UK dialectal, Northern England, Scotland) Toinhabit;occupy.
  2. (reflexive, archaic, UK dialectal, Northern England, Scotland) Tolocate oneself.
  3. (transitive, archaic, UK dialectal, Northern England, Scotland) Tobuild;erect;fashion.
  4. (intransitive, archaic, UK dialectal, Northern England, Scotland) Todwell; have a dwelling.
Derived terms
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Etymology 3

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FromMiddle Englishbyge, fromOld Norsebygg(“barley, probablyHordeum vulgare,common barley”), fromProto-Germanic*bewwuz(“crop, barley”). Cognate withOld Englishbēow(“barley”).

Alternative forms

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Noun

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big (uncountable)

  1. One or more kinds ofbarley, especiallysix-rowed barley.

References

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  1. ^Pokorny, Julius (1959) “98-102”, inIndogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 1, Bern, München: Francke Verlag,pages98-102

Anagrams

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Dutch

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Etymology

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FromMiddle Dutchbagge,vigge, fromOld Dutch*bigga, fromProto-West Germanic*biggō. Originally a word exclusive to the Northern Dutch dialects.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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big m orf (pluralbiggen,diminutivebiggetje n)

  1. piglet, littlepig
    Synonym:keu

Derived terms

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Irish

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Pronunciation

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Adjective

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big

  1. inflection ofbeag:
    1. vocative/genitivemasculinesingular
    2. (archaic)dativefemininesingular

Mutation

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Mutated forms ofbig
radicallenitioneclipsis
bigbhigmbig

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Modern Irish.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

References

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  1. ^Quiggin, E. C. (1906)A Dialect of Donegal, Cambridge University Press, page43
  2. ^Sjoestedt, M. L. (1931)Phonétique d’un parler irlandais de Kerry [Phonetics of an Irish Dialect of Kerry] (in French), Paris: Librairie Ernest Leroux, page30

Italian

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Etymology

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Pseudo-anglicism, a clipping ofEnglishbig shot.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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big m (invariable)

  1. star (entertainment)
  2. big shot,big noise

Jamaican Creole

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Etymology

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Derived fromEnglishbig.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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big (comparativebiga,superlativebigis)

  1. big
  2. great; to a great extent
    • 2012,Di Jamiekan Nyuu Testiment, Edinburgh: DJB, published2012,→ISBN,2 Piita 1:17:
      Wi did de de wen Faada Gad imself ana Jiizasbig taim, wen im ier di vais fram di riilbig Wan — di wan webig an powaful. Di vais se, “Dis a fi mi pikni we mi lov an im mek mi wel api.”
      Jesus heard the voice of God, theGreatest Glory, when he received honor and glory from God the Father. The voice said, “This is my Son, whom I love, and I am very pleased with him.”

Romagnol

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Etymology

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Englishbig.

Pronunciation

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  • (Central Romagnol):IPA(key): [ˈbiːɡ]

Noun

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big m (invariable)

  1. importantperson
    • Agnëli l'è unbig dl'indóstria e dlafinânza.
      G. Agnelli is animportant person of industry and finance.

Scots

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Etymology

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FromOld Norsebyggja(“inhabit, build”).

Pronunciation

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Verb

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big (third-person singular simple presentbigs,present participlebiggin,simple pastbiggit,past participlebiggit)

  1. tobuild

Torres Strait Creole

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Etymology

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FromEnglishbig, cognate with (the first part of)Bislamabikfala,bigfala,Pijinbigfala,Tok Pisinbikpela.

Adjective

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big

  1. big

Derived terms

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Welsh

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Pronunciation

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Noun

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big

  1. Soft mutation ofpig.

Mutation

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Mutated forms ofpig
radicalsoftnasalaspirate
pigbigmhigphig

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Welsh.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

Western Apache

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Etymology

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FromProto-Athabaskan*-wə̓t̕.

Cognates:Navajo-bid,Plains Apache-bid.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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big (inalienable)

  1. belly,stomach,abdomen
    shibig ―my belly
    bibig ―her/his/their belly

Usage notes

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  • The form-big occurs in the White Mountain varieties;-bid occurs in San Carlos and Dilzhe’eh (Tonto).

Yola

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Etymology

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FromMiddle Englishbigge.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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big

  1. great,big
    • 1867,GLOSSARY OF THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, page36:
      Abig dole.
      Agreat deal.
    • 1867,GLOSSARY OF THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, page36:
      Abig oanès.
      Thebig ones.
    • 1867, “VERSES IN ANSWER TO THE WEDDEEN O BALLYMORE”, inSONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, page98:
      Trippeathès an brand-eyrons war ee-brougkt to abig breal.
      [Trippets and brandirons were brought to thelarge fire.]

References

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  • Jacob Poole (d. 1827) (before 1828) William Barnes, editor,A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, published1867,page36
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