adult
/əˈdʌlt/
nounadjective
Common
1.n.a fully developed person from maturity onward
2.n.any mature animal
3.adj.(of animals) fully developed
“an adult animal”
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adult and big share a recorded sense, so the question is not what they mean but which one fits. adult means “a fully developed person from maturity onward”. big means “above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent”. big is the more common of the two in everyday English.
/əˈdʌlt/
1.n.a fully developed person from maturity onward
2.n.any mature animal
3.adj.(of animals) fully developed
“an adult animal”
/ˈbɪɡ/
1.adj.above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
“a large city”
2.adj.significant
“graduation was a big day in his life”
3.adj.very intense
“a bad headache”
| adult | big | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /əˈdʌlt/ | /ˈbɪɡ/ |
| Said | uh-DUHLT | big |
| Syllables | 2 | 1 |
| Letters | 5 | 3 |
| Parts of speech | noun, adjective | adjective, adverb |
| Senses | 4 | 17 |
| How common | Common | Core |
| Synonyms | grownup | large |
Full entry for adult · Full entry for big · More comparisons