bigwig
/ˈbɪɡ.wɪɡ/noun
bigwig is spelled B-I-G-W-I-G: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 9 million words in written English, the 89,388th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bigwig means “A person of importance in a group or organization” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bigwig is bigwigs.
How many letters and syllables are in bigwig?
| Letters | 6: B-I-G-W-I-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 9 million words; the 89,388th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is bigwig?
Bigwig appears about once in every 9 million words in written English, the 89,388th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce bigwig?
- /ˈbɪɡ.wɪɡ/
Bigwig has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-bigwig.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with bigwig
Also written: big-wig (one word or two).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of bigwig
- bigwigs plural
- big wig
- big-wig
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does bigwig mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
informalA person of importance in a group or organization.
The company bigwig is gathering his staff together for a meeting today.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Bigwig in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense A person of importance:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | grosse légume, huile, gros bonnet, bonze, grosse pointure |
| German | hohes Tier, Persönlichkeit, Bonze, Großkopferter |
| Spanish | pez gordo, barón, mandamás, jefazo |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does bigwig come from?
First arose in the 1730s, from big + wig. Formerly, English men of authority (such as judges and Members of Parliament) wore wigs. Bigwig plays on the idea that higher authority is denoted by a larger wig.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).