big rig

noun

plural big rigs

US

: a large truck with an attached trailer that is used for hauling freight : semitrailer sense 2

A father and grandfather, Brubaker worked behind the wheel of a big rig for over a decade before transferring to a supervisory role.

—Deirdre Reilly

He formerly drove a big rig for a freight company.

—Jim Kleinpeter

Examples of big rig in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Per the outlet, the big rig was transporting touring equipment from Tuesday night’s Seattle show. — Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026

At least one person died Thursday morning after a big rig overturned on Interstate 5 south of Zamora in Yolo County, according to the California Highway Patrol. — Sacbee.com, 27 Aug. 2026

The California Highway Patrol said earlier in the day that a big rig overturned on southbound Interstate 5 in Yolo County near Woodland early Thursday morning, killing the driver. — Brandon Downs, CBS News, 27 Aug. 2026

Cars, trucks, and big rigs sit in various states of disassembly as engineers test and validate software designed to turn otherwise ordinary machines into rolling robots. — Reed Albergotti, semafor.com, 21 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1946, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for big rig

• renege
• big
• brig
• brigg
• dig
• fig
• gig
• jig
• mig
• pig
• prig
• sprig

Kids Definition

big rig

noun

: semitrailer sense 2