"big up" meaning in English

See big up in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

Audio: en-au-big up.ogg [Australia] Forms: big ups [plural]
Head templates: {{en-noun}} big up (plural big ups)
  1. (slang, also big ups) Significant respect or acclaim. Tags: slang Synonyms: props, respect Related terms: strength training, shout out, word up
    Sense id: en-big_up-en-noun-uiQGxQU7 Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, English phrasal verbs formed with "up" Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 18 31 4 27 20 Disambiguation of English phrasal verbs formed with "up": 24 27 6 25 19

Verb

Audio: en-au-big up.ogg [Australia] Forms: bigs up [present, singular, third-person], bigging up [participle, present], bigged up [participle, past], bigged up [past], big upped [participle, past, rare], big upped [past, rare]
Head templates: {{en-verb|*|+|+,~ped<l:rare>}} big up (third-person singular simple present bigs up, present participle bigging up, simple past and past participle bigged up or (rare) big upped)
  1. (transitive, informal) To increase one's muscle mass. Tags: informal, transitive Synonyms: build up, bulk up, pump iron, work out
    Sense id: en-big_up-en-verb-J6Ly6-wx Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, English phrasal verbs formed with "up" Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 18 31 4 27 20 Disambiguation of English phrasal verbs formed with "up": 24 27 6 25 19
  2. (informal) To become big. Tags: informal Synonyms: enlarge
    Sense id: en-big_up-en-verb-sWe-VLsM
  3. (slang, transitive) To behave confidently and proudly. Tags: slang, transitive
    Sense id: en-big_up-en-verb-9NU--fqs Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, English phrasal verbs formed with "up" Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 18 31 4 27 20 Disambiguation of English phrasal verbs formed with "up": 24 27 6 25 19
  4. (slang, transitive) To proclaim or exaggerate the importance of; to promote. Tags: slang, transitive
    Sense id: en-big_up-en-verb-NPGtrgSJ Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, English phrasal verbs formed with "up" Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 18 31 4 27 20 Disambiguation of English phrasal verbs formed with "up": 24 27 6 25 19 Synonyms: overemphasize, overplay, play up, sell, big up [slang], cut it fat [UK, obsolete, slang], exaggerate, hyperbolize [archaic], overcharge [dated], overdo, overemphasize, overstate, play up, stretch [figuratively], three-sheet

Inflected forms

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "bigs up",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bigging up",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bigged up",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bigged up",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "big upped",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past",
        "rare"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "big upped",
      "tags": [
        "past",
        "rare"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "*",
        "2": "+",
        "3": "+,~ped<l:rare>"
      },
      "expansion": "big up (third-person singular simple present bigs up, present participle bigging up, simple past and past participle bigged up or (rare) big upped)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "18 31 4 27 20",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "24 27 6 25 19",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English phrasal verbs formed with \"up\"",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              8,
              17
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2007, David Handler, The Bright Silver Star: A Berger and Mitry Mystery:",
          "text": "She was bigged up—had a weight-lifter's rippling arms.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To increase one's muscle mass."
      ],
      "id": "en-big_up-en-verb-J6Ly6-wx",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(transitive, informal) To increase one's muscle mass."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "build up"
        },
        {
          "word": "bulk up"
        },
        {
          "word": "pump iron"
        },
        {
          "word": "work out"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "informal",
        "transitive"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              214,
              220
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2012, Caspar Henderson, The Book of Barely Imagined Beings, page 83:",
          "text": "Relatively simple multicellular forms had already existed for a hundred million years when the Cambrian began: the explosion had a long fuse, and during this earlier fizzling life experimented with various ways to big up.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To become big."
      ],
      "id": "en-big_up-en-verb-sWe-VLsM",
      "links": [
        [
          "big",
          "big"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(informal) To become big."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "enlarge"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "informal"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "18 31 4 27 20",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "24 27 6 25 19",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English phrasal verbs formed with \"up\"",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To behave confidently and proudly."
      ],
      "id": "en-big_up-en-verb-9NU--fqs",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(slang, transitive) To behave confidently and proudly."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "slang",
        "transitive"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "18 31 4 27 20",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "24 27 6 25 19",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English phrasal verbs formed with \"up\"",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              10,
              16
            ]
          ],
          "text": "I want to big up my bro on the mic.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              18,
              21
            ],
            [
              33,
              35
            ]
          ],
          "text": "They're trying to big themselves up to be more than they are.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2007, Apple announces new mobile phone, BBC Online, 9 January 2007",
          "text": "In a keynote speech, attended by over 2,000 people, Steve Jobs spent the first 10 minutes bigging up the move to Intel chips."
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              52,
              59
            ],
            [
              68,
              70
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2017, Daniel Tammet, Every Word is a Bird We Teach to Sing, →ISBN, page 162:",
          "text": "Some say of me, \"There's Adrian again in the media, bigging himself up.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              9,
              16
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2022 August 24, Stephen Roberts, “Bradshaw's Britain: the Cotswold Line”, in RAIL, number 964, page 61:",
          "text": "Bradshaw bigs up local trades: \"Agricultural produce, good cider and perry (which require a little brandy to qualify them), wool, hops, and prime cattle, - the last being a splendid breed, white-faced, with soft reddish-brown coats. [...].\"",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To proclaim or exaggerate the importance of; to promote."
      ],
      "id": "en-big_up-en-verb-NPGtrgSJ",
      "links": [
        [
          "proclaim",
          "proclaim"
        ],
        [
          "exaggerate",
          "exaggerate"
        ],
        [
          "promote",
          "promote"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(slang, transitive) To proclaim or exaggerate the importance of; to promote."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "overemphasize"
        },
        {
          "word": "overplay"
        },
        {
          "word": "play up"
        },
        {
          "word": "sell"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "tags": [
            "slang"
          ],
          "word": "big up"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "tags": [
            "UK",
            "obsolete",
            "slang"
          ],
          "word": "cut it fat"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "word": "exaggerate"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "tags": [
            "archaic"
          ],
          "word": "hyperbolize"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "tags": [
            "dated"
          ],
          "word": "overcharge"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "word": "overdo"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "word": "overemphasize"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "word": "overstate"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "word": "play up"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "tags": [
            "figuratively"
          ],
          "word": "stretch"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "word": "three-sheet"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "slang",
        "transitive"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "en-au-big up.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/1/1a/En-au-big_up.ogg/En-au-big_up.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/En-au-big_up.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
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  "word": "big up"
}

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "big ups",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "big up (plural big ups)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "18 31 4 27 20",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "24 27 6 25 19",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English phrasal verbs formed with \"up\"",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              17,
              23
            ]
          ],
          "text": "I want to give a big up to my bro on the mic.",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Significant respect or acclaim."
      ],
      "id": "en-big_up-en-noun-uiQGxQU7",
      "links": [
        [
          "big ups",
          "big ups"
        ],
        [
          "respect",
          "respect"
        ],
        [
          "acclaim",
          "acclaim"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "also big ups",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(slang, also big ups) Significant respect or acclaim."
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "word": "strength training"
        },
        {
          "word": "shout out"
        },
        {
          "word": "word up"
        }
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "props"
        },
        {
          "word": "respect"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "slang"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "en-au-big up.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/1/1a/En-au-big_up.ogg/En-au-big_up.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/En-au-big_up.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ]
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  ],
  "word": "big up"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English nouns",
    "English phrasal verbs",
    "English phrasal verbs formed with \"up\"",
    "English verbs",
    "Pages with 2 entries",
    "Pages with entries"
  ],
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "bigs up",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bigging up",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bigged up",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bigged up",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "big upped",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past",
        "rare"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "big upped",
      "tags": [
        "past",
        "rare"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "*",
        "2": "+",
        "3": "+,~ped<l:rare>"
      },
      "expansion": "big up (third-person singular simple present bigs up, present participle bigging up, simple past and past participle bigged up or (rare) big upped)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English informal terms",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English transitive verbs"
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        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              8,
              17
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2007, David Handler, The Bright Silver Star: A Berger and Mitry Mystery:",
          "text": "She was bigged up—had a weight-lifter's rippling arms.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To increase one's muscle mass."
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(transitive, informal) To increase one's muscle mass."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "build up"
        },
        {
          "word": "bulk up"
        },
        {
          "word": "pump iron"
        },
        {
          "word": "work out"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "informal",
        "transitive"
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      "categories": [
        "English informal terms",
        "English terms with quotations"
      ],
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        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              214,
              220
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2012, Caspar Henderson, The Book of Barely Imagined Beings, page 83:",
          "text": "Relatively simple multicellular forms had already existed for a hundred million years when the Cambrian began: the explosion had a long fuse, and during this earlier fizzling life experimented with various ways to big up.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To become big."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "big",
          "big"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(informal) To become big."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "enlarge"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "informal"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English slang",
        "English transitive verbs"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To behave confidently and proudly."
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(slang, transitive) To behave confidently and proudly."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "slang",
        "transitive"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English slang",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples",
        "English transitive verbs"
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            [
              10,
              16
            ]
          ],
          "text": "I want to big up my bro on the mic.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              18,
              21
            ],
            [
              33,
              35
            ]
          ],
          "text": "They're trying to big themselves up to be more than they are.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2007, Apple announces new mobile phone, BBC Online, 9 January 2007",
          "text": "In a keynote speech, attended by over 2,000 people, Steve Jobs spent the first 10 minutes bigging up the move to Intel chips."
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              52,
              59
            ],
            [
              68,
              70
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2017, Daniel Tammet, Every Word is a Bird We Teach to Sing, →ISBN, page 162:",
          "text": "Some say of me, \"There's Adrian again in the media, bigging himself up.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              9,
              16
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2022 August 24, Stephen Roberts, “Bradshaw's Britain: the Cotswold Line”, in RAIL, number 964, page 61:",
          "text": "Bradshaw bigs up local trades: \"Agricultural produce, good cider and perry (which require a little brandy to qualify them), wool, hops, and prime cattle, - the last being a splendid breed, white-faced, with soft reddish-brown coats. [...].\"",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To proclaim or exaggerate the importance of; to promote."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "proclaim",
          "proclaim"
        ],
        [
          "exaggerate",
          "exaggerate"
        ],
        [
          "promote",
          "promote"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(slang, transitive) To proclaim or exaggerate the importance of; to promote."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "overemphasize"
        },
        {
          "word": "overplay"
        },
        {
          "word": "play up"
        },
        {
          "word": "sell"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "tags": [
            "slang"
          ],
          "word": "big up"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "tags": [
            "UK",
            "obsolete",
            "slang"
          ],
          "word": "cut it fat"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "word": "exaggerate"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "tags": [
            "archaic"
          ],
          "word": "hyperbolize"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "tags": [
            "dated"
          ],
          "word": "overcharge"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "word": "overdo"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "word": "overemphasize"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "word": "overstate"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "word": "play up"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "tags": [
            "figuratively"
          ],
          "word": "stretch"
        },
        {
          "source": "Thesaurus:exaggerate",
          "word": "three-sheet"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "slang",
        "transitive"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
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      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/1/1a/En-au-big_up.ogg/En-au-big_up.ogg.mp3",
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}

{
  "categories": [
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English nouns",
    "English phrasal verbs",
    "English phrasal verbs formed with \"up\"",
    "English verbs",
    "Pages with 2 entries",
    "Pages with entries"
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  "pos": "noun",
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      "word": "strength training"
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      "word": "shout out"
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      "word": "word up"
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              17,
              23
            ]
          ],
          "text": "I want to give a big up to my bro on the mic.",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Significant respect or acclaim."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
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        ],
        [
          "respect",
          "respect"
        ],
        [
          "acclaim",
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        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "also big ups",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(slang, also big ups) Significant respect or acclaim."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "props"
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        {
          "word": "respect"
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      ],
      "tags": [
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  "sounds": [
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      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/En-au-big_up.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "big up"
}

Download raw JSONL data for big up meaning in English (6.3kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2026-09-28 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2026-09-02 using wiktextract (1a05e46 and e3d6d4e). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.