bigwig
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Alternative forms
Etymology
First arose in the 1730s, from big + wig. Formerly, English men of authority wore wigs. Bigwig plays on the idea that higher authority is denoted by a larger wig.
Pronunciation
- enPR: bĭgʹwĭg, IPA(key): /ˈbɪɡ.wɪɡ/
Audio (Southern England): (file)
Rhymes: -ɪɡ
Noun
bigwig (plural bigwigs)
- (humorous) A person of importance to a group or organization.
- Synonyms: big cheese, VIP; see also Thesaurus:important person
- The company bigwig is gathering his staff together for a meeting today.
- 1891, Grace L. Keith Johnston, The Halletts: A Country Town Chronicle, volume 3, page 34:
- […] more innocently, and no doubt profitably, than if he had dined at a big-wig's board or bemused himself with smoke and beer among his brethren of the pen.
- 2016 May 5, “Reality star Bethenny Frankel talks hats, hangovers and her Kentucky Derby party at Empire City Casino”, in New York Daily News:
- Before her hay-day, she attended many derbys under her dad's celebrity where she'd hobnob with the bigwigs in Millionaire's Row.
Derived terms
Translations
A person of importance
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