big wheel
noun
plural big wheels
1
2
British
: ferris wheel
The wheel formation is the basis of most rides, and the Big Wheel itself is not a new machine.—
Ian Starsmore
Ian StarsmoreThey ate toffee apples and sweet popcorn, shot at targets, tossed rings and rode on the big wheel.—Paulo Lins
Paulo LinsSynonyms
- big
- big boy
- big cheese
- big gun
- big leaguer
- big shot
- big-timer
- bigfoot
- biggie
- bigwig
- fat cat
- heavy
- heavy hitter
- heavyweight
- high-muck-a-muck
- high-muckety-muck
- honcho
- kahuna
- kingfish
- kingpin
- major leaguer
- muckety-muck
- muck-a-muck
- mucky-muck
- nabob
- nawab
- nibs
- nob [chiefly British]
- pooh-bah
- poo-bah
- wheel
Examples of big wheel in a Sentence
He's a big wheel in local politics.
rose in the ranks to become a big wheel on Wall Street
Recent Examples on the Web
Other visual flourishes include bulging fenders and big wheel openings with flared lips.
—Mark Phelan, Detroit Free Press, 10 Apr. 2024
Wheel of Fortune was created back in 1975 by Merv Griffin, and the game has contestants attempting to solve hangman-style puzzles while spinning a big wheel and winning money. See Seacrest’s full statement below.
—Rania Aniftos, Billboard, 27 June 2023
Sajak will not be its hub forever, but the whole point of the big wheel is to spin and spin and spin while staying in place.
—James Poniewozik, New York Times, 13 June 2023
In a visual medium such as film or television, the writer is often viewed as an invisible spoke in a very big wheel.
—Stacy Perman, Los Angeles Times, 8 May 2023
Special operations crews from the Phoenix Fire Department used a big wheel operation Saturday night to assist a 30-year-old woman off of the Dobbins Lookout on South Mountain.
—Jeremy Yurow, The Arizona Republic, 18 Sep. 2022
By January 2023, the big wheels were turnin’ to get proud Mary’s burnin’ — again — in Dallas.
—Sarah Blaskovich, Dallas News, 1 June 2022
By defeating the resolution the Board endorsed earlier votes by the Recreation and Parks Commission and the Historic Preservation Commission to allow the big wheel to keep on spinning until March 1, 2025, at a cost of $18 per ride for adults and $12 per ride for seniors and citizens.
—Sam Whiting, San Francisco Chronicle, 16 Mar. 2021
The festive favorite, which began in 2005, brings in huge crowds every year thanks to its 200-plus rides, including a 70-meter high big wheel, mulled wine stations and an outdoor skating rink, which happens to be the largest in the UK.
—Tamara Hardingham-Gill, CNN, 30 Nov. 2021
Mark Phelan, Detroit Free Press, 10 Apr. 2024
Wheel of Fortune was created back in 1975 by Merv Griffin, and the game has contestants attempting to solve hangman-style puzzles while spinning a big wheel and winning money. See Seacrest’s full statement below.
—Rania Aniftos, Billboard, 27 June 2023
Sajak will not be its hub forever, but the whole point of the big wheel is to spin and spin and spin while staying in place.
—James Poniewozik, New York Times, 13 June 2023
In a visual medium such as film or television, the writer is often viewed as an invisible spoke in a very big wheel.
—Stacy Perman, Los Angeles Times, 8 May 2023
Special operations crews from the Phoenix Fire Department used a big wheel operation Saturday night to assist a 30-year-old woman off of the Dobbins Lookout on South Mountain.
—Jeremy Yurow, The Arizona Republic, 18 Sep. 2022
By January 2023, the big wheels were turnin’ to get proud Mary’s burnin’ — again — in Dallas.
—Sarah Blaskovich, Dallas News, 1 June 2022
By defeating the resolution the Board endorsed earlier votes by the Recreation and Parks Commission and the Historic Preservation Commission to allow the big wheel to keep on spinning until March 1, 2025, at a cost of $18 per ride for adults and $12 per ride for seniors and citizens.
—Sam Whiting, San Francisco Chronicle, 16 Mar. 2021
The festive favorite, which began in 2005, brings in huge crowds every year thanks to its 200-plus rides, including a 70-meter high big wheel, mulled wine stations and an outdoor skating rink, which happens to be the largest in the UK.
—Tamara Hardingham-Gill, CNN, 30 Nov. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'big wheel.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near big wheel
Cite this Entry
“Big wheel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/big%20wheel. Accessed 26 Apr. 2024.
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