Bigged

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Constructed or erected something, a use found in Scots and Northern English dialects ; praised or promoted someone or something enthusiastically, as in slang
2. Put together a structure in regional speech ; hyped up or lauded a person, especially in informal British slang
3. Erected or built something in older dialect usage ; talked up or boosted the reputation of another person in colloquial speech

Etymology: "Bigged" is the past tense and past participle of "big", so its history is that of the verb "big". The source offers several routes for "big" and does not settle between them. The most likely is the Middle English "bigge", meaning "powerful, strong", which may come from a Scandinavian source: Old Norse "byggva", "to build, dwell in, inhabit", a secondary form of "búa", "to dwell". That sense of building and dwelling is the surprising part, since "big" now means only size. Related Norwegian and Low German words such as "bugge", "great man", point to a sense of importance or swelling. Another possibility links "big" to a much older root meaning "to swell", which would make it a relative of "bogey", "bugbear" and "bug". Both routes are attested, and the connection is not certain.

Synonyms: build, construct

Antonyms: demolish, raze