bad boy

noun

plural bad boys

1

: a person who flouts convention

a literary bad boy

The band always has reveled in its reputation as the bad boys of rock, something that undoubtedly has kept them going for seven decades.

—Mike Patterson

2

informal : something that is very good, impressive, effective, etc.

However, it's possible to pair two of these speakers for a superwide stereo soundstage. If you happen to have the budget and acreage (and amenable neighbors), you can even wirelessly connect up to 30 of these bad boys.

—Scott Tharler

Two or three of these bad boys covered with onions and cilantro … will set me up until dinner …

—Hannah Wilson, quoted at Axios

Examples of bad boy in a Sentence

He has become known as the bad boy of the American television industry.

Recent Examples on the Web

So Cameron plays matchmaker, paying one of Padua High School’s bad boys Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger) to take Kat out on a date. — Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 17 Aug. 2026

Barton takes on the role of Fletch, the camp’s bad boy and Sage’s love interest, in Camp Rock 3. — Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Aug. 2026

Luckily for all parties involved, these bad boys have been in the storage shed outside Sanford Stadium presumably since the bus parked on the ride back from this game 15 years ago. — Austin Perry Outkick, FOXNews.com, 1 Aug. 2026

Lastly, Mark Salling, who played the series’ bad boy Puck, died of an apparent suicide at 35 in 2018. — Giovana Gelhoren, InStyle, 25 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1860, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for bad boy

• ahoy
• alloy
• annoy
• carboy
• convoy
• cowboy
• decoy
• deploy
• destroy
• employ
• employe
• enjoy