# Large or big?



## Jalc

Hi,

Is there a nuance when you say a large car or a big car ?

Thanks


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## Kat LaQ

Hi Jalc,

I would never say a large car, I would say a big car.  

Other examples where they are not interchangeable:
- a large amount of money
- a big surprise

I can't think of a hard and fast rule.  Sometimes they are interchangeable (a large/big farm), sometimes not.


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## Monsieur Hoole

slightly different register.  big car = assez neutre
                                    large car = un tout petit peu plus soutenu


M.H.


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## .   1

A big car is a large car and a large car is a big car.  There is no difference to my eye.

.,,


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## Kat LaQ

Well, it seems there are some regional differences here.  In the US, "large car" sounds totally weird, we just wouldn't say it.  Very interesting, mes amis in Canada and Australia!

In general, big is less formal than large, if that helps answer your nuance question, jalc.


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## Jalc

Thank you all. As I just arrived in the US, I will look for a big car, and invite you all to try it!


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## Kat LaQ

Just be careful. *Big* cars often mean *big* bucks at the gas pump!  And *big* problems for the environment.  Some people think it's no *big* deal, but I think perhaps their egos are a bit too *large*.


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## marget

Kat LaQ said:


> Just be careful. *Big* cars often mean *big* bucks at the gas pump! And *big* problems for the environment. Some people think it's no *big* deal, but I think perhaps their egos are a bit too *large*.


 

I like _big _cars, yet I'd never call them l_arge_ cars.  Some of my friends call them boats!


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## Jalc

You are right, Kat Laq. I will avoid SUVs, V8s, and that kind of *big* stuff, that look a bit exagerated to my european eyes.


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## timpeac

Kat LaQ said:


> Well, it seems there are some regional differences here. In the US, "large car" sounds totally weird, we just wouldn't say it. Very interesting, mes amis in Canada and Australia!
> 
> In general, big is less formal than large, if that helps answer your nuance question, jalc.


Anglais aussi! For me "a large car" is perfectly acceptable. So is big car, and I also view the difference as being that "large" is slightly more refined. I've been trying to see if I can devine some sort of rule to differentiate the two (since I would say "a large amount of money" not big for example) but haven't come up with anything yet.


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## timpeac

See here a discussion in EO
http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?p=342231&highlight=large+big#post342231

For the record, I don't really agree with their conclusion that large is just bigger than, well, big. For me there are occasions when only one or the other is possible and I'm not sure that I think of a large car as being bigger than a big car anyway. I'm tempted to say that a large car suggests wide to me, but I couldn't swear that that is not pure over-analysis and Romance language influence.


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## spinyilex

I think they are generally interchangeable, but if I had to differentiate, I would say that "big" is more commonly used in everyday conversation, and that "large" has a slightly more literal or academic connotation.  

For example, in casual conversation, most people would refer to "big cars" and "small cars," but in a magazine article comparing the merits of different models of cars, the vehicles would probably be divided into categories named "large sedans" or "compact sedans."  "Large" just has a more scholarly sound.

And to illustrate why I think "large" sounds more literal, if someone told me that John had a big heart, I would assume that John was kind and generous, whereas if they said that John had a large heart, I would wonder if he had a medical condition.

In any case, if someone said to me, "I really prefer large cars to small ones," I don't think it would sound odd to me at all.


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## timpeac

Yes, spinyilex, I agree with those nuances too.

A few occasions that don't seem interchangeable to me -

big problem, not large problem
big or large dick but only big tits (sorry, but a relevant example that occurred to me!)
large number of people said that... not big number...
ditto for amount instead of number

Apart from amount, I can't think of another case where large is acceptable for something non-concrete. Big issue, big problem, big headache, big insult etc.

Just a few ideas to see if anyone can formulate a rule!


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## Kat LaQ

Can't seem to formulate a good rule, but agree that they are not always interchangeable.  In fact, they sometimes confer different meanings!

a big deal - something important (not necessarily a literal deal)
a large deal - a salesman got a contract with a client for a lot of money

She made a big impression on me - figurative
When they removes the rock it left a large impression in the lawn that had to be filled in.- literal

So sometimes big can mean important: big deal, big impression, big day (I have a big day tomorrow - 3 interview), Big Night Out (title of an interesting movie). I guess that's something of a rule, to add to timpeac's observation about amount and spinyilex's about formal written language vs. spoken.

Large is often more literally about size. A big headache is hard to measure. A large front lawn can be measured. Big can be measureable, non-measureable or figurative. A big front lawn is OK, too. Not sure this is the most elegant rule, and it is certainly not always true ("a large part" is figurative), but hope it helps.

The room was very large. (big is OK, too, but more spoken) 
These pants are too big for me.
He gave a large donation to the university. (big is OK, too, but more spoken)
It's a very large/big company.
a large collection of CDs
a large/big selection of flowers
Luck played a large part in his success. (big is OK, too, but more spoken)
larger than life
large scale
large format (cameras, printers)
large files
the next big thing
large/big database
10 big myths about love


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## Cath.S.

timpeac said:


> Yes, spinyilex, I agree with those nuances too.
> 
> A few occasions that don't seem interchangeable to me -
> 
> big problem, not large problem
> big or large dick but* only big tits* (sorry, but a relevant example that occurred to me!)
> large number of people said that... not big number...
> ditto for amount instead of number
> 
> Apart from amount, I can't think of another case where large is acceptable for something non-concrete. Big issue, big problem, big headache, big insult etc.
> 
> Just a few ideas to see if anyone can formulate a rule!


Click here for large breasts.


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## timpeac

egueule said:


> Click here for large breasts.


1,570,000 hits or tits? Is that 785,000 pairs?

Note I said "tits" not "breasts" - I agree "large breasts" sounds fine - probably in line with the general feeling that "large" is higher register than "big" (as is "breast" over "tit").

I think that percentages are going to be more meaningful from google here:

big breasts/ large breasts = 2,730,000/1,550,000 = 1.76
big tits/ large tits = 10,800,000/723,000 = 14.94

So it seems that tits in general are some 4 times more popular than breasts, but if they are large then they are going to be particularly popular if they are tits and moderately popular if they are breasts.

I'd like to add that this information is based on statistical research only and I'll leave any real life investigation to the more adventurous.


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## Cath.S.

Je savais bien que ce ne serait pas pareil pour breast et pour tits, mais comme tu avais omis de le préciser... 

Bon, cette fois je descends en dessous de la ceinture !  
pants are too big
pants are too large


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## Nicomon

marget said:


> I like _big _cars, yet I'd never call them l_arge_ cars. Some of my friends call them boats!


 
I laugh at that one, as I thought it was a regionalism. In Quebec, we also call "bateau" those big, oversize cars that take 2 parking spaces.  

As for *big *or *large*, I'd say (as Spinyilex suggested in post #12) that the man on the street says *big*. And car dealers or reviewers say (or at least write) *large*.

For instance here and there


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## timpeac

egueule said:


> Je savais bien que ce ne serait pas pareil pour breast et pour tits, mais comme tu avais omis de le préciser...
> 
> Bon, cette fois je descends en dessous de la ceinture !
> pants are too big
> pants are too large


Yes, clothing is usually "large" (as opposed to small, medium) not "big". "Big pants", in BE meaning underpants, is said as a joke meaning this sort of thing http://www.multisports.com/jmoss.jpg , and the joke is based on the incongruity of mixing "big" with an item of clothing.

While I think of it, "big hair" is another example of this. She has big hair for example http://dvdtoile.com/ARTISTES/13/13134.jpg


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## roland098

egueule said:


> Click here for large breasts.


 

Ah yes, but look, for first example says:

Ten FREE minutes of your choice of natural *large breasts* at Big Tits VOD

So, this might go along with the idea that 'big' is a more informal word than 'large'. Hence large breasts, but big tits...

Oh, OK, I see this point was already made. Never mind!


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## Nicomon

egueule said:


> Click here for large breasts.


 
And it's interesting to see that the same applies to several (probably all) parts of the body. Try googling big or large... ears, eyes, feet, head, mouth, nose, etc. You will find many more big heads than large heads, and someone who is a big mouth doesn't necessarily have a large mouth.


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## timpeac

Nicomon said:


> And it's interesting to see that the same applies to several (probably all) parts of the body. Try googling big or large... ears, eyes, feet, head, mouth, nose, etc. You will find many more big heads than large heads, and someone who has a big mouth doesn't necessarily have a large mouth.


And also someone who is a big-head doesn't necessarily have a big (or large) head. I have a big headache now!


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## Pamelita_K

But feet are large or big, without much distinction other than the "register" at which the conversation occurs…

 
  large city (population)/big city (culturally very active)
  large star (physical object)/big star (rockstar, movie star, etc)
large sister (physical body type)/big sister (older, but possibly shorter, smaller)

  what about big idea?


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## Nicomon

Pamelita_K said:


> what about big idea?


 
I got curious (as I don't remember hearing it) and googled large idea and large ideas (plural). More hits than I would have espected, though by far outnumbered by big ideas


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## aspiroots

Hi everybody,

Here is my first contribution to this forum.
For french-speaking people, I found something like a rule. Tell me if I'm in a mist.

*Large = grand
Big = Gros*

Yes, sounds to be very simple.
Here is the examples you gave on this thread.

j'ai un Gros problème, pas grand problème
Grande ou grosse b*** mais seulement gros seins
un grand nombre de gens le disent, pas gros nombre
La pièce était très grande
ce pentalon est trop grand pour moi
Une très grande/grosse entreprise
grande échelle
grand format

I tried with a lot of other examples, they all ssems to work


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## Dumpling

. said:


> A big car is a large car and a large car is a big car. There is no difference to my eye.
> 
> .,,


 
I agree...perhaps it is a New Zealand/Australian thing. I would say, "That's a large car" or "That's a big car". I'd probably be more inclined to use large in this context...that could just be me.


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## sojourney

Okay, here's my stab at this.

Aside from the rule of "large is more formal," which I agree with and think explains most of this, I have a few others.

In a nod to our own notions of euphony in US english, one of the elements that I think hasn't been mentioned is the tendency to avoid constructions that result in sing-songy effect.  "Large car" is just one such thing.  If I were just reading it, I have less of a problem, but I'd never say such a thing, it just sounds strange.  "Big car" is preferable.  Move it apart from the noun, though, and it gets easier (and yes, more formal): "My Suburban is pretty large.  We should be able to fit everything in," or some such usage, is more acceptable, since the sounds aren't adjacent, though I'd still lean to "big" even in that case.  

Vowel repeats are less preferred over consonantal  ones--for instance, "big bar" is better than "large bar,"  and "big barge" (a type of boat) is much better than--please don't say this--"large barge."  

Dominating this principle is another principle, that "large" is used when the "large" thing is actually describing something else.  For instance, if you said that "a Mercedes sedan is a type of large car," large would be preferable to "a type of big car."  

It's again, large being more formal.  But this rule is also, I'm guessing, because we use "Big X" in situations like that as a kind of single thing, a name, and we don't always want to evoke that (for instance, a large business is different from Big Business.  A large business is a business that is large/big.  Big Business usually refers to Exxon, Microsoft, Coca-Cola, or some such entity.)

Finally, I think the most important rule other than the formal is that large is used where one is describing a quantity, and big only when describing a specific thing.  A _large_ number of people could, if you hit them all with knockout gas, be picked up and made into one _big _pile of people.  Big statue, big building, large amounts of money, large quantities of water in the local lake.

And quite a large number of words in this post.  But perhaps it will be useful.


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## KDYoda

I think I might have a rule that works most of the time.
One generally uses large when talking about either a hypothetical grouping of things, or a singular noun.
Ex. Large amount of eggs. Large shirts. OR. Large car. Large chair.

I find that with Big, however, one can only use the latter of the first comparisons, a singular noun. One could not say,
"Big shirts" without sounding slightly incorrect, or a "Big amount of eggs."
Besides the fact that large seems to be slightly more "proper," I believe that it can be used in a broader sense.
It can describe a singular noun, along with a hypothetical grouping of nouns.

~Kyle


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## Michael_Goldman

Dear friends,

A large swimming pool or a big swimming pool?

If both are possible with some difference in the meaning, please explain the difference. Thanks.


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## tartopom

I guess I'd probably say

Wow, you've got a big pool.
Even if saying 'You've got a large swimming-pool' would mean the same. But that's not the sentence that'd cross my mind  first.


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