as in heavy
one of high position or importance within a group
many of the heavy hitters in the wine industry were boozing and schmoozing at the expo
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Recent Examples of heavy hitter
That’s saying a lot; every casino has a steakhouse and heavy hitters such as Jose Andres, Jean George Vongerichten, Emeril Lagasse and Wolfgang Puck all have steakhouses there.
—
Rachel E. Stassen-Berger, Des Moines Register, 12 Feb. 2026
Neon acquired the bulk of this year’s global heavy hitters at Cannes and is proving increasingly dominant in this brave new world that Netflix helped usher in.
—David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 10 Feb. 2026
Some heavy hitters are pushing back on the 10% cap, though.
—Susan Tompor, USA Today, 8 Feb. 2026
However, her collection of old show posters revealed that the Barking Kettle played alongside heavy hitter Newfoundland musicians of the era like Kelly Russell and Figgy Duff.
—Hazlitt, 4 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for heavy hitter
Rachel E. Stassen-Berger, Des Moines Register, 12 Feb. 2026
Neon acquired the bulk of this year’s global heavy hitters at Cannes and is proving increasingly dominant in this brave new world that Netflix helped usher in.
—David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 10 Feb. 2026
Some heavy hitters are pushing back on the 10% cap, though.
—Susan Tompor, USA Today, 8 Feb. 2026
However, her collection of old show posters revealed that the Barking Kettle played alongside heavy hitter Newfoundland musicians of the era like Kelly Russell and Figgy Duff.
—Hazlitt, 4 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for heavy hitter
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heavy hitter
Noun
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How the Script Walks a Tonal Tightrope Radcliffe credited playwrights Macmillan and Donahoe with building a structure that lets the performer pivot rapidly between the heavy and the silly.—
Hanna Wickes,
Kansas City Star,
13 Mar. 2026
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Unlike, say, Mexican or South Asian cuisines, American food is not particularly bean-heavy.—
Yasmin Tayag,
The Atlantic,
12 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The Actor award went to Amy Madigan, a lone nominee from a horror film who’s swimming against a prevailing current that favors Best Picture heavyweights.—
Nate Jones,
Vulture,
12 Mar. 2026
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The kingdom is the region’s heavyweight, and its decisions could shape whether others follow.—
Abbas Al Lawati,
CNN Money,
12 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The Cowboys took advantage of those precious seconds when TCU’s bigs would rotate back to find open men cutting to the basket or shooters in the corner.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 Mar. 2026
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Actually, most starting Big Ten bigs would leave Fielder in the dust.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
8 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The team needs that supporting cast clicking at the same time as big guns to create more sustained pressure.—
Dom Luszczyszyn,
New York Times,
19 Feb. 2026
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Anthopoulos wants a big gun Obviously, the Braves are shopping to augment their starting rotation.—
AJ Willingham,
AJC.com,
18 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Will the Niners spend like big boys and sign Hendrickson, Linderbaum and JFM?—
Cam Inman,
Mercury News,
9 Mar. 2026
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Only little boys are called big boys.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
15 Jan. 2026
Noun
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More Coloradans are seeing the big wheel spin in their favor each year.—
Aldo Svaldi,
Denver Post,
5 Feb. 2026
-
The cars that Geely showcased at CES, in Las Vegas, were large SUVs with big wheels, opulent interiors, and three rows of seats—not unlike a Ford Explorer.—
Patrick George,
The Atlantic,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Cohen is a star baseball player for Windward and Fullmer plays football for Harvard-Westlake and is the son of former major leaguer Brad Fullmer, one of the best players ever out of Montclair Prep.—
Eric Sondheimer,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Jan. 2026
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Former Yankees pitcher and the oldest living major leaguer Art Schallock died at age 100 on March 6.—
Brendan Le,
PEOPLE,
5 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Around him was not a single big leaguer, minor leaguer, or anyone with a heater topping 90 miles per hour.—
Sam Blum,
New York Times,
9 Mar. 2026
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Anthony becomes the 12th Red Sox big leaguer to commit to the WBC.—
Mac Cerullo,
Boston Herald,
16 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Heavy hitter.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heavy%20hitter. Accessed 15 Mar. 2026.
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