{
    "term": "big",
    "partOfSpeech": "adjective",
    "ox3000": true,
    "cefr": "a1",
    "definitions": [
        {
            "senseNumber": 1,
            "definition": "large in size, degree, amount, etc.",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "cefr": "a1",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "a big man/house/increase"
                },
                {
                    "text": "This shirt isn't big enough."
                },
                {
                    "text": "It's the world's biggest computer company."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He had this **great big** grin on his face."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The lobster's claws are **bigger than** human hands."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The festival is **getting bigger** every year."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Her smile **grew bigger**."
                },
                {
                    "text": "They were earning big money."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The news came as a big blow."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He was a big man—tall and broad-shouldered."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He was a short man with great big glasses."
                },
                {
                    "text": "This house is rather big for us. We need something smaller."
                },
                {
                    "text": "There's been a big increase in prices."
                },
                {
                    "text": "We were hoping the show would be a really big success."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The whole story is just a big fat lie."
                }
            ],
            "collocations": {
                "verbs": ["be", "look", "seem"],
                "adverb": ["extremely", "fairly", "very"],
                "phrases": ["big fat", "great big"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 2,
            "definition": "older",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "cefr": "a2",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "my big brother"
                },
                {
                    "text": "You're a big girl now."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 3,
            "definition": "important; serious",
            "labels": "(rather informal)(informal)",
            "cefr": "a2",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "It's a big decision to have to make."
                },
                {
                    "text": "You are making a big mistake."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Unemployment is a **big problem** in the region."
                },
                {
                    "text": "This legislation will make a **big difference**."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The **big question** is: why did they do it?"
                },
                {
                    "text": "Housing is a **big issue** in London."
                },
                {
                    "text": "a potentially big drawback"
                },
                {
                    "text": "She took the stage for her **big moment**."
                },
                {
                    "text": "It doesn't **get bigger** than the World Cup Final!"
                },
                {
                    "text": "Tonight is the biggest match of his career."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Do you really think we can take on the **big boys** *(= compete with the most powerful people)*?"
                }
            ],
            "collocations": {
                "verbs": ["be", "look", "seem"],
                "adverb": ["extremely", "fairly", "very"],
                "phrases": ["big fat", "great big"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 4,
            "definition": "needing a lot of effort, money or time to succeed",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "cefr": "b2",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "They're full of big ideas."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Difficulty and failure"]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 5,
            "definition": "popular with the public; successful",
            "sensetop": "big in…",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "cefr": "c1",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "Orange is the big colour this year."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The band's very big in Japan.",
                    "contextForm": "big in…"
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Success"]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 6,
            "definition": "enthusiastic about somebody/something",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "I'm a big fan of hers."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 7,
            "definition": "doing something often or to a large degree",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "a big eater/drinker/spender"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 8,
            "definition": "kind or generous",
            "sensetop": "big of somebody",
            "labels": "(usually ironic)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "He gave me an extra five pounds for two hours' work. I thought ‘That's big of you’."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to be/become too proud of yourself; to behave as if you are more important than you really are",
            "examples": [],
            "topics": ["Personal qualities"]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "an important and powerful person, especially in an organization",
            "labels": "(informal, humorous)",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "used to say that you are not impressed by something",
            "labels": "(informal, ironic)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "So he earns more than me. Big deal!"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "the most important person or thing",
            "labels": "(North American English, informal, humorous)",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "an important person (in a small community)",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "an offensive term for a weak man, who is not brave or confident",
            "labels": "(British English, informal)",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "the ability to keep moving ahead of your competitors, especially in politics",
            "labels": "(especially North American English, informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "In politics, momentum is known as the big mo."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He's picking up a lot of support and **has the big mo**."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "an important person",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "the situation as a whole",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "Right now forget the details and take a look at the big picture."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "the use or threat of force or power",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "The authorities used quiet persuasion instead of the big stick."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "the three, four, etc. most important countries, people, companies, etc.",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "She works for one of the Big Six."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "used to say that somebody has been greedy by taking more food than they can eat",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to show your approval of somebody by clapping your hands; to be applauded in this way",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "Ladies and gentlemen, let’s give a big hand to our special guests tonight."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to have more important or more interesting things to do",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 1,
            "definition": "to be bad at keeping secrets",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 2,
            "definition": "to talk too much, especially about your own abilities and achievements",
            "cefr": "c2",
            "examples": [],
            "topics": ["Personal qualities"]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "on a large/small scale",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "The new delivery service has taken off in a big way."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Many people are investing in a small way in the stock market."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He then started spending money in a big way."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to make something seem more important than it really is",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "used when you realize that you have said something that you should not have said",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": []
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "a person or thing that people think will be very popular or successful soon",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "She has been talked up as the next big thing in British tennis."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Everyone is trying to guess what the next big thing in street fashion is going to be."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "used to say that something is not important or not a problem",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "If I don't win it's no big deal."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "so important to the economy of a country that when it finds itself in financial trouble, the government or central bank must act to save it",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "Shouldering the huge costs of rescuing banks that are too big to fail has been left to taxpayers."
                }
            ]
        }
    ],
    "pronunciations": {
        "uk": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/bɪɡ/",
                "audio": "bi/big/big__gb_2.mp3"
            }
        ],
        "us": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/bɪɡ/",
                "audio": "bi/big/big__us_1.mp3"
            }
        ]
    },
    "wordOrigin": "Middle English (in the sense ‘strong, mighty’): of unknown origin."
}