verb
embiggen
Embiggen (verb) means to make something bigger, or to become bigger.
verb
1
To make something bigger, or to become bigger.
"You can hide enemies, stack them up high, embiggen them with a Super Mushroom, hide coins in pipes, and so much more!"
— 1:24 from the start (2019)
"As I joyfully embiggen myself into the vague silhouette of Chewbacca, I have time to reflect on just what it is about big hair that I find so elementally appealing."
— , Hair: a big issue (2012)
"Train stations: how busy is yours? Victoria Station in 1927. Click image to embiggen."
— , Every train station in Britain listed and mapped: find out how busy each one is (2013)
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Etymology
From em- + biggen or big + em- -en, possibly analogous to belittle. The morphology parallels that of enlarge (en- + large) or embolden (em- + bold + -en). The verb's first recorded use is in an 1884 edition of the British journal Notes and Queries: A Medium of Intercommunication for Literary Men, General Readers, Etc. by C. A. Ward (see quotation below). The word’s current popularity follows its deployment as an intentionally ungainly form by television writer Dan Greaney for The Simpsons episode “Lisa the Iconoclast” in 1996.
Related words
Frequently asked questions
What is the meaning of embiggen?
"embiggen" (verb) means to make something bigger, or to become bigger.
What is the opposite of embiggen?
Opposites of "embiggen" include reduce, shrink, contract, diminish.
