big

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See also:BIG

English

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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InheritedfromNorthern 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 casebigwould 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 arebiganimals, and they eat a lot.
    1. (informal)Fat.
      Synonyms:chubby,plus-size,rotund;see alsoThesaurus:overweight
      Gosh, she isbig!
  2. (sometimesfigurative)Large with young;pregnant;swelling;ready to give birth or produce.
    Synonyms:full,great,heavy;see alsoThesaurus:pregnant
    She wasbigwith 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 evenbigpeople have then gone to bed[.]
    • 1998April 12, Tom Armstrong,Marvin(comic):
      Uh oh... that looks like one of those things thebigpeople don't want us to touch, Marvin!
    Kids should get help frombigpeople if they want to use the kitchen.
    We were just playing, and then somebigkids came and chased us away.
    She did it all on her own like abiggirl.
    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 yourbigage.
  6. (informal)Mature,conscientious,principled;generous.[withof‘someone’]
    That's verybigof you; thank you!
    I tried to be thebiggerperson 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 ofyou, much appreciated,' and off he goes with Big John back to Ferrari's.
  7. (informal)Importantorsignificant.
    Synonyms:essential,paramount,weighty;see alsoThesaurus:important
    What's sobigabout 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 abigman some day, and—I'm glad I didn't steal. "
    • 2011October 29, Neil Johnston, “Norwich 3-3 Blackburn”,inBBC Sport:
      It proved abigmiss 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.
  8. Popular.
    Synonyms:all the rage,in demand,well liked
    That style is verybigright now in Europe, especially among teenagers.
    • 1984,“Big in Japan”, inForever Young,performed by Alphaville:
      Bigin Japan, alright, pay then I'll sleep by your side / Things are easy when you'rebigin Japan
  9. (of a city)Populous.
  10. (informal)Used as an intensifier, especially of negative-valence nouns
    You are abigliar.  Why are you in such abighurry?
    • 2007August 8, Tom Armstrong,Marvin(comic):
      Why is it whenever I'm in abighurry he's always in abigslow?
  11. (of an industry or other field, or institution(s) therein,oftencapitalized)Operating on a largescale,especially if therefore havingundueorsinisterinfluence.
    There were concerns about the ethics ofbigpharma.
    bigmoney
    BigTech,BigSteel―large or influential tech or steel companies
    BigScience―science performed by large terms, of large scope, with government or corporate funding
    • 2019April 25, Samanth Subramanian, “Hand dryers v paper towels: the surprisingly dirty fight for the right to dry your hands”, inThe Guardian‎[1]:
      After the Airblade’s launch, a battle began to boil, pitting the dryer industry against the world’s most powerful hand-drying lobby:BigTowel.
    • 2020July 28, “Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google Prepare for Their ‘Big Tobacco Moment’”, inNew York Times‎[2]:
      “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 —BigPharma,BigTobacco,BigBanks,” 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
    • 2019July 2, Louise Taylor, “Alex Morgan heads USA past England into Women’s World Cup final”, inThe Guardian‎[3]:
      Neville isbigon 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 notbigon 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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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 aloudmanner.
  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 wonbigbetting on the croquet championship.
    Don't miss our November sale — it's your last chance to savebigbefore Christmas!
    1. (informal)(modifying a preposition)
      I've always beenbiginto sport, but I'm especiallybiginto football.
  4. On a large scale, expansively.
    You've got to thinkbigto 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 himbigand the guy just crumpled.

Noun

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big(pluralbigs)

  1. An important or powerful person; a celebrity; abig name.
    Synonym:big shot
  2. (in theplural)Thebig leagues,big time.
    Synonym:big leagues
    • 2004June 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 thebigsare less than one in six.
  3. (universityslang)An initiated member of asororityorfraternitywho 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.
    • 2019April 1, Audrey Steinkamp, “Sororities pair new members with" bigs "”, inYale Daily News‎[4]:
      She added that the relationship betweenbigsand littles is "what each pair makes of it," and that a lot of the pairs often get dinner together and become close friends.
    • 2022September 27, Shreya Varrier, “Gamma Rho Lambda provides LGBTQIA+ community in greek life”, inIowa State Daily‎[5]:
      Some traditions of the chapter include lineages withbigsand littles, receiving of paddles from abig,and a national stroll, Wolsch-Gallia said.
  4. (BDSM,ABDL)The participant inageplaywho 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,UKdialectal,Northern England,Scotland)Toinhabit;occupy.
  2. (reflexive,archaic,UKdialectal,Northern England,Scotland)Tolocateoneself.
  3. (transitive,archaic,UKdialectal,Northern England,Scotland)Tobuild;erect;fashion.
  4. (intransitive,archaic,UKdialectal,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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bigmorf(pluralbiggen,diminutivebiggetjen)

  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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Irish mutation
Radical Lenition Eclipsis
big bhig mbig
Note:Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

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(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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bigm(invariable)

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

Jamaican Creole

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Etymology

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DerivedfromEnglishbig.

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 Piita1:17:
      Wi did de de wen Faada Gad imself ana Jiizasbigtaim, wen im ier di vais fram di riilbigWan — di wan webigan powaful. Di vais se, “Dis a fi mi pikni we mi lov an im mek mi wel api.”
      Jesus heard the voice of God, theGreatestGlory, 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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bigm(invariable)

  1. importantperson
    • Agnëli l'è unbigdl'indóstria e dlafinânza.
      G. Agnelli is animportant personof 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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Welsh mutation
radical soft nasal aspirate
pig big mhig phig
Note:Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

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-bigoccurs in the White Mountain varieties;-bidoccurs 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:
      Abigdole.
      Agreatdeal.
    • 1867,GLOSSARY OF THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY,page36:
      Abigoanès.
      Thebigones.
    • 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 abigbreal.
      [Trippets and brandirons were brought to thelargefire.]

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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