major league

noun

1

: a league of highest classification in U.S. professional baseball

broadly : a league of major importance in any of various sports

2

: big time sense 2

major-league

ˈmā-jər-ˈlēg 

adjective

major leaguer noun

Synonyms of major league

• big(s)
• big time

Examples of major league in a Sentence

when you've landed a tenure-track position at that university, you're playing in the major leagues

Recent Examples on the Web

Lawson, 41, joined the Marlins this past July as roving hitting coach after working as Boston’s major league assistant hitting coach for two seasons and Boston’s minor league hitting coordinator in 2024. — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 12 Oct. 2026

José Ramírez hit a two-run homer off Sean Burke in the fourth inning, and the White Sox became the fourth team in major league history to lose a Division Series after winning the first two games on the road. — ABC News, 11 Oct. 2026

Practically no major league has shortened its regular season calendar on a permanent basis. — Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 8 Oct. 2026

Vilade, a 27-year-old getting extensive big league playing time this year with his sixth major league organization, hit an opposite-field, 340-foot drive into the right-field short porch in the fourth. — CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1887, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for major league

• chincoteague
• blitzkrieg
• fatigue
• intrigue
• muskeg

Kids Definition

major league

noun

: a league in the highest class of U.S. professional sports