big bad
noun
variants
or Big Bad
plural big bads or Big Bads
: a major villain or antagonist (as in a movie, show, or game)
When Ursula, the story's big bad, took to the screen, I would run behind the entertainment center and cover my eyes, a fact my mom loves to remind me about whenever she gets the chance.—
KT Hawbaker
KT HawbakerAs the show [Buffy the Vampire Slayer] aged, the Big Bads became more dangerous and the lessons more adult, but Buffy never gave up …—Kaitlin Thomas
Kaitlin ThomasThe Big Bad this time around is the wind mage Vaati, who has captured Zelda, and it's your quest to defeat him and prevent the unholy union of princess and evil eyeball-blob-thing.—Tony Ponce
Tony PonceExamples of big bad in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Stevens will play Owen Stark, the Five Borough Killer, and the second big bad of Season 2.
—Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 14 Apr. 2026
He was stressed, worried, but not wanting to give me big bad news over the phone.
—Angus Chen, STAT, 14 Apr. 2026
In an exclusive conversation, Kelly and Akinnuoye-Agbaje chat about playing Rue’s big bad bosses—and whether Euphoria is a big enough town for the two of them.
—Chris Murphy, Vanity Fair, 13 Apr. 2026
But for the past 15 years, he's been running a large-scale, real-world experiment to see if giving workers ownership can fit into the big bad world of PE.
—Sam Yellowhorse Kesler, NPR, 8 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for big bad
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Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 14 Apr. 2026
He was stressed, worried, but not wanting to give me big bad news over the phone.
—Angus Chen, STAT, 14 Apr. 2026
In an exclusive conversation, Kelly and Akinnuoye-Agbaje chat about playing Rue’s big bad bosses—and whether Euphoria is a big enough town for the two of them.
—Chris Murphy, Vanity Fair, 13 Apr. 2026
But for the past 15 years, he's been running a large-scale, real-world experiment to see if giving workers ownership can fit into the big bad world of PE.
—Sam Yellowhorse Kesler, NPR, 8 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for big bad
Cite this Entry
“Big bad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/big%20bad. Accessed 21 Apr. 2026.
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