big league

¹

[ big leeg ]

noun

1. Sports. a major league, as in baseball:

   His debut in the big leagues was as a relief pitcher for the Dodgers in the final game of the regular season.

2. Informal. the area of greatest competition, highest achievement or rewards, etc.:

   He's a local politician who isn't ready for the big league.

big-league

²

[ big-leeg ]

adjective

1. Sports. of or belonging to a major league:

   a big-league pitcher.

2. Informal. among the largest, foremost, etc., of its kind:

   the big-league steel companies.

Other Words From

• big lea·guer big-lea·guer noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of big league¹

An Americanism dating back to 1880–85

Origin of big league²

An Americanism dating back to 1885–90; adjective use of big league

Idioms and Phrases

An area of tough competition and high rewards; the largest or foremost of its kind. For example, Winning an Oscar put this unknown actress in the big league . The term alludes to the major (big) leagues of American baseball. [Late 1800s] Also see big time , def. 2.

Example Sentences

When he retired from baseball last month, he did so as a Minnesota Twin, the team that drafted him, developed him, brought him to the big leagues and made him an all-star.

From Washington Post

Especially when you’re being scrutinized, especially when you’re in the big leagues.

From Washington Post

Spector said it has been exciting to watch new players “trying to make their mark and prove that they belong in the big leagues.”

From Washington Post

Alderson, 73, has a vast background in running big league front offices.

From Washington Post

Kieboom played 53 times under big league lights and is one of only 19,902 people ever to do so.

From Washington Post

If his big league career was short-lived, it was nonetheless substantial by almost any measure.

From The Daily Beast

Down here, the big-league dreams of the players are still just far-off lights on the horizon.

From The Daily Beast

The average salary is more than $3 millon, and the minimum big-league contract is $480,000.

From The Daily Beast

This is the big league, and politics is a blood sport here, a tradition going back hundreds of years.

From The Daily Beast

Jacqui, for her part, is represented by another big-league lawyer.

From The Daily Beast

If you fellows hadnt given me Big League support theyd corralled the game after all.

From Project Gutenberg

Ive never missed an opportunity of seeing a Big League game and trying to wise up on the methods of the players.

From Project Gutenberg

Big-league fielders did not wait till the ball was high in the air before running to get under it.

From Project Gutenberg

To be a successful pitcher in the Big League, a man must have the head and the arm.

From Project Gutenberg

Newspapers work on the mental attitude of Big League players.

From Project Gutenberg