big idea
Americannoun
-
any plan or proposal that is grandiose, impractical, and usually unsolicited.
You're always coming around here with your big ideas.
-
purpose; intention; aim.
What's the big idea of shouting at me?
Etymology
Origin of big idea
An Americanism dating back to 1920–25
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I feel bad for her, but I’m still disappointed this is her big idea for Mr.
From Literature
“Okay, so what’s your big idea for getting inside?”
From Literature
“Distributors looked at it and saw a substance and a really big idea, revolving around that wonderful sledgehammer of a line.”
“As many of you know, I started Sprinkles in 2005 with a KitchenAid mixer and a big idea,” Nelson said in the post.
From Los Angeles Times
The Big Idea at the bottom of it is novel enough, but even though it has real-world precedents, it does inch across the line between clever and goofy.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
