"big up" means: To give credit, recognition, or shout-out to someone. As a verb or interjection. "Big up" + name pays respect.. This is a fairly neutral word with no inherent risk attached. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than something dangerous. If your child uses it, context will usually make the meaning clear. A brief, curious question about where they heard it is generally enough to know whether to follow up.
big up
To give credit, recognition, or shout-out to someone.
Seen in the wild
My mum would only take us to Wimpy as a kid as it was the only fast food place that served food on plates with knife and fork Big up Wimpy on Gillingham Hight Street (rip) and their lime milkshakes
To the niggas in the gym…. BIG UP THAT ASS LIKE YOU BIG UP THAT BACK!!!
Haha, luv it, bet Saliba started it. Big up you lot! Enjoy tonight. 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
Big up for the Pine Walks massive. Mum still rattles round her house there
Definitions
To give credit, recognition, or shout-out to someone. As a verb or interjection. "Big up" + name pays respect.
“My mum would only take us to Wimpy as a kid as it was the only fast food place that served food on plates with knife and fork Big up Wimpy on Gillingham Hight Street (rip) and their lime milkshakes”
“Haha, luv it, bet Saliba started it. Big up you lot! Enjoy tonight. 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽”
“Big up for the Pine Walks massive. Mum still rattles round her house there”
"Big up to my mom for raising us."
"big up" means: To give credit, recognition, or shout-out to someone. As a verb or interjection. "Big up" + name pays respect.. This is a fairly neutral word with no inherent risk attached. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than something dangerous. If your child uses it, context will usually make the meaning clear. A brief, curious question about where they heard it is generally enough to know whether to follow up.
"big up" means: To give credit, recognition, or shout-out to someone. As a verb or interjection. "Big up" + name pays respect.. Register: neutral, standard English, usable in most everyday contexts. A common non-native mistake is to use the word in the wrong register, or to assume one fixed meaning when it is actually polysemous; always check the surrounding register and the audience before producing it yourself. In formal writing, prefer a neutral synonym or a short descriptive phrase, and use this word only when you have heard or read it being used naturally in a comparable context.
“My mum would only take us to Wimpy as a kid as it was the only fast food place that served food on plates with knife and fork Big up Wimpy on Gillingham Hight Street (rip) and their lime milkshakes”
— Bluesky· May 2026“To the niggas in the gym…. BIG UP THAT ASS LIKE YOU BIG UP THAT BACK!!!”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Haha, luv it, bet Saliba started it. Big up you lot! Enjoy tonight. 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Big up for the Pine Walks massive. Mum still rattles round her house there”
— Bluesky· May 2026
Comments
For specific readers
Why is this section here?
Slang is read by different audiences for very different reasons. The For parents view re-explains the term in plain, non-judgemental language so a caregiver can understand what their child means without needing the surrounding subculture. The For English learners view focuses on register (when it's safe to use), formal alternatives, and common mistakes — what a textbook won't teach you.
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(transitive, AAVE, slang) To make or keep (someone) current in knowledge, fashion or supply of (something).
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(slang, AAVE) To best someone in a competition; to successfully challenge someone.
- put up on66%
(ditransitive, AAVE, slang) To make (someone) aware of or up-to-date on (something).
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(idiomatic, slang) To call out or criticise someone for something they have done wrong.