boo

1 of 4

interjection

ˈbü 

—used to express contempt or disapproval or to startle or frighten

boo

2 of 4

noun (1)

plural boos

1

: a shout of disapproval or contempt

2

: any utterance at all

—usually used in negative constructions

never said boo

boo

3 of 4

verb

booed; booing; boos

intransitive verb

: to deride especially by uttering a prolonged boo

transitive verb

: to express disapproval of by booing

the crowd booed the referee

boo

4 of 4

noun (2)

plural boos

US slang

: a romantic partner : sweetheart, honey

Your parents might keep a sharp eye on potential partners and your besties may lay down difficult "friend tests," but only one real opinion on your new boo truly matters: what your dog thinks of them.

—Jaime Lees

This has left me skeptical of all new relationships—including my new boo.

—Griffin Wynne

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• bird [chiefly British]
• Bronx cheer
• catcall
• hiss
• hoot
• jeer
• raspberry
• razz
• snort

Examples of boo in a Sentence

Noun (1)

A chorus of boos was heard after the shot missed the goal.

The announcement was greeted by a mixture of boos and cheers.

Verb

Many people in the crowd booed when the announcement was made.

Many people in the crowd booed the announcement, but a few people cheered it.

Recent Examples on the Web

Interjection

C’mon, when the day began the Dodgers were in third place in the standings, but led the league in pitching and led all of baseball in run differential and … boo! —Bill Plaschke, latimes.com, 25 May 2017

Noun

Social media lit up with videos of the boos and catcalls that greeted Trump during his visit to Jack Trice Stadium in Ames, Iowa, including a photo that quickly gained traction of an Iowa State fan flipping off the former president with his middle fingers. —David Jackson, USA TODAY, 10 Sep. 2023

This was a fourth quarter that heard a smattering of boos from the home crowd unaccustomed to this fate. —Michael Casagrande | [e-mail], al, 10 Sep. 2023

At a sprint car race later that day, a crowd of 25,000 greeted Mr. DeSantis’s appearance with a chorus of boos. —Nicholas Nehamas, New York Times, 10 Sep. 2023

The boos from the crowd in Jacksonville were so loud for Presidential hopeful Ron DeSantis that Councilwoman Ju’Coby Pittman had to stop the Governor to settle the crowd and remind them to put politics aside in this moment. —Tori Otten, The New Republic, 28 Aug. 2023

He was met with boos, leading Councilwoman Ju’Coby Pittman to take the microphone and tell the crowd to put the parties and politics aside. —David Aaro, ajc, 28 Aug. 2023

Christie, a former U.S. attorney and frequent Trump antagonist, pushed back aggressively despite being drowned out at times by the audience’s boos. —Steve Peoples and Nicholas Riccardi, Chicago Tribune, 24 Aug. 2023

The question drew loud boos from the crowd in the country that came out from under the yoke of Russian rule in 1991 following the fall of the Soviet Union. —Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 16 Aug. 2023

Bae, baby, boo — these are just a few of the most popular nicknames to call your significant other in 2023. —Nina Derwin, Woman's Day, 1 Aug. 2023

Verb

Fans waved white playoff towels, booed every call that didn’t go their way and cheered for each celebrity featured on the scoreboard, including Malala Yousafzai, a Nobel Peace Prize winner; the tennis great Billie Jean King; and Teresa Weatherspoon, the former Liberty star. —Monique Jaques Sara Ziegler, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2023

Actually, the only mopping done Thursday or this week, for that matter, was what the Rangers did to Toronto over the course of a four-game series that began with significant playoff implications and ended with fans left at Rogers Centre booing their own team. —Evan Grant, Dallas News, 15 Sep. 2023

Never was that more evident than when he was heckled and booed by Republican delegates at the Utah GOP convention in 2021. —Bryan Schott, The Salt Lake Tribune, 13 Sep. 2023

The governor was booed at a vigil in Jacksonville last month honoring the victims. —Marina Pitofsky, USA TODAY, 7 Sep. 2023

In other campaign news … Back at home: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis returned to his home state after a racially motivated shooting in Jacksonville, where a white gunman killed three Black people, and DeSantis was booed at the vigil. —Chuck Todd, NBC News, 28 Aug. 2023

In addition to Tyler, previous Camp Flog Gnaw performers have included Drake (who was heavily booed), Solange, SZA, Snoop Dogg, Lana Del Rey, Kanye West, A$AP Rocky, Kid Cudi, and Ms. Lauryn Hill. —Jonathan Cohen, Spin, 18 Aug. 2023

In her press conference, Siegemund tearfully expressed her frustration with the crowd, who booed her during the match. —Bypaige Hagy, Fortune, 1 Sep. 2023

Vamp and her co-host, Knott’s show writer Jeff Tucker, removed the medallions after a minute of consistent booing from the crowd. —Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Interjection

expressive formation; the voiced labial release and high vowel presumably heighten the suddenness of the utterance

Noun (1)

derivative of boo entry 1

Verb

derivative of boo entry 2

Noun (2)

of uncertain origin

Note: Perhaps ultimately a hypocoristic reduction of brother, applied to unrelated males, but the details are unclear.

First Known Use

Interjection

1639, in the meaning defined above

Noun (1)

1884, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1833, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun (2)

1988, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing boo

• boo-boo
• boo hoo

• boo-boo
• boo hoo

Kids Definition

boo

1 of 2 interjection

ˈbü 

—used to express contempt or disapproval or to startle or frighten

boo

2 of 2 noun

plural boos

1

: a shout of disapproval or contempt

2

: any sound at all

never said boo

boo verb