Meanings
big oil1
nounbig oil (uncountable)
alternative Big Oil
- derogatoryuncountablebusinessThe world's largest oil and gas companies (supermajors), understood as a business group having significant political, economic, or social power.
Eight years after Kyoto, Big Oil and Big Coal remain in complete and unchallenged power.
2005 May, Bill McKibben, “Climate of Denial”, in Mother Jones1 more example
It follows an inquiry launched by House Democrats in 2021, which focused on big oil’s alleged efforts to mislead the public about the climate crisis.
2023 June 21, Dharna Noor, “Senate examines role of ‘dark money’ in delaying climate action”, in The Guardian, →ISSN
Big Oil2
nounBig Oil (uncountable)
- uncountableAlternative letter-case form of big oil.
Cite this entry
APA
big oil. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/big%20oil
MLA
“big oil.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/big%20oil. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “big oil,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/big%20oil.
Source: big oil on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.