From WordNet (r) 2.0 (August 2003) [wn]:
big
adj 1: above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or
extent; "a large city"; "set out for the big city"; "a
large sum"; "a big (or large) barn"; "a large family";
"big businesses"; "a big expenditure"; "a large number
of newspapers"; "a big group of scientists"; "large
areas of the world" [syn: large] [ant: small]
2: significant; "graduation was a big day in his life"
3: of very great significance; "deciding to drop the atom bomb
was a very big decision"; "a momentous event" [syn:
momentous]
4: conspicuous in position or importance; "a big figure in the
movement"; "big man on campus"; "he's very large in
financial circles"; "a prominent citizen" [syn: large,
prominent]
5: very intense; "a bad headache"; "in a big rage"; "had a big
(or bad) shock"; "a bad earthquake"; "a bad storm" [syn:
bad]
6: loud and firm; "a big voice"; "big bold piano sounds"
7: prodigious; "big spender"; "big eater"; "heavy investor"
[syn: {big(a)}, {heavy(a)}]
8: (of animals) fully developed; "an adult animal"; "a grown
woman" [syn: adult, full-grown, fully grown,
grown, grownup]
9: marked by intense physical force; "a big wind"
10: feeling self-importance; "too big for his britches"; "had a
swelled head"; "he was swelled with pride" [syn:
swelled, vainglorious]
11: older brother or sister; "big sister" [syn: {big(a)},
elder, older] [ant: {little(a)}]
12: exhibiting self-importance; "big talk" [syn: boastful,
{braggart(a)}, {bragging(a)}, braggy, cock-a-hoop,
crowing, self-aggrandizing, self-aggrandising]
13: generous and understanding and tolerant; "a heart big enough
to hold no grudges"; "that's very big of you to be so
forgiving"; "a large and generous spirit"; "a large
heart"; "magnanimous toward his enemies" [syn: large,
magnanimous]
14: given or giving freely; "was a big tipper"; "the bounteous
goodness of God"; "bountiful compliments"; "a freehanded
host"; "a handsome allowance"; "Saturday's child is
loving and giving"; "a liberal backer of the arts"; "a
munificent gift"; "her fond and openhanded grandfather"
[syn: bighearted, bounteous, bountiful,
freehanded, handsome, giving, liberal,
openhanded]
15: in an advanced stage of pregnancy; "was big with child";
"was great with child" [syn: {big(p)}, enceinte,
expectant, gravid, {great(p)}, {large(p)},
{heavy(p)}, {with child(p)}]
adv 1: extremely well; "his performance went over big"
2: in a boastful manner; "he talked big all evening" [syn:
boastfully, vauntingly, large]
3: on a grand scale; "think big" [ant: small]
4: in a major way; "the play failed big at the box office"
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Big \Big\ (b[i^]g), a. [Compar. Bigger; superl. Biggest.]
[Perh. from Celtic; cf. W. beichiog, beichiawg, pregnant,
with child, fr. baich burden, Arm. beac'h; or cf. OE. bygly,
Icel. biggiligr, (properly) habitable; (then) magnigicent,
excellent, fr. OE. biggen, Icel. byggja, to dwell, build,
akin to E. be.]
1. Having largeness of size; of much bulk or magnitude; of
great size; large. "He's too big to go in there." --Shak.
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2. Great with young; pregnant; swelling; ready to give birth
or produce; -- often figuratively.
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[Day] big with the fate of Cato and of Rome.
--Addison.
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3. Having greatness, fullness, importance, inflation,
distention, etc., whether in a good or a bad sense; as, a
big heart; a big voice; big looks; to look big. As applied
to looks, it indicates haughtiness or pride.
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God hath not in heaven a bigger argument. --Jer.
Taylor.
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Note: Big is often used in self-explaining compounds; as,
big-boned; big-sounding; big-named; big-voiced.
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To talk big, to talk loudly, arrogantly, or pretentiously.
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I talked big to them at first. --De Foe.
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Syn: Bulky; large; great; massive; gross.
[1913 Webster] Big
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Big \Big\, Bigg \Bigg\, v. t. [OE. biggen, fr. Icel. byggja to
inhabit, to build, b?a (neut.) to dwell (active) to make
ready. See Boor, and Bound.]
To build. [Scot. & North of Eng. Dial.] --Sir W. Scott.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Big \Big\, Bigg \Bigg\, n. [OE. bif, bigge; akin to Icel. bygg,
Dan. byg, Sw. bjugg.] (Bot.)
Barley, especially the hardy four-rowed kind.
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"Bear interchanges in local use, now with barley, now
with bigg." --New English
Dict.
[1913 Webster] Big