From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishthe Big Dipperthe Big DipperAmerican EnglishHA a group of seven bright stars seen only from northern parts of the world SYN the Plough British English → big dipper
Examples from the Corpus
the Big Dipper• I can find the Big Dipper, but the North Star can be elusive.• The black silhouettes of the maples showed against the sky near the Big Dipper, almost overhead.• Gedanken wondered whether anyone ever fell off the Big Dipper.• That's what you spotted on the Big Dipper.• I put the stretcher under my arm and walked off toward the Big Dipper, in the direction of the tent.• He made another friend, which was the Big Dipper. 