big brother

noun

1

: an older brother

2

: a man who serves as a companion, father figure, and role model for a boy

3

Big Brother [Big Brother, personification of the power of the state in 1984 (1949) by George Orwell]

a

: the leader of an authoritarian state or movement

b

: an all-powerful government or organization monitoring and directing people's actions

Examples of big brother in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Ariella, 3, savored a drippy vanilla cone; a baby named Kaida licked a spoonful of chocolate, with help from her big brother, Bryant. —Emily M. Olson, Hartford Courant, 6 May 2025

The star went on to touch upon the more challenging aspects of parenthood in the interview, too, revealing to Harper’s Bazaar that RZA initially struggled with the idea of welcoming a sibling but eventually came around to being a big brother. —Clare Fisher, People.com, 28 Apr. 2025

Gomez said Francis was like a wise father, a big brother. —Nathan Solis, Los Angeles Times, 21 Apr. 2025

Coppola’s friend and collaborator John Milius hired Howell for Red Dawn (1984), reuniting him with his Outsiders big brother, Patrick Swayze. —Maggie Fremont, EW.com, 25 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1809, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for big brother

• another
• godmother
• grandmother
• stepbrother
• stepmother
• mother
• nother
• other
• smother
• souther