J. D. Biersdorfer
Synonyms
Noun (2)
Verb (2)
Examples of boot in a Sentence
Poppy Morgan, Rolling Stone, 22 Nov. 2023
Winter-ready snow boots and a new pair of classic, straight-fit jeans are just a few items that will upgrade your cold-weather wardrobe this year.
—Rachel Trujillo, Peoplemag, 22 Nov. 2023
Days and weeks of rain also gave Angelenos the opportunity to actually use all those stylish rain boots ... and the rare chance to rejoice when the sun came out.
—Mary McNamara, Los Angeles Times, 22 Nov. 2023
My patent leather stiletto Western calf boots with a boot chain.
—Nyla Stanford, Vogue, 22 Nov. 2023
The candle is a fan-favorite for a reason, with notes of crisp red apple, bright nectar, and warm cloves to boot.
—Michelle Rostamian, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 Nov. 2023
Vionic, a footwear brand that was previously an Oprah favorite, successfully combines both style and comfort with its shoe offerings, including boots, loafers, sneakers, mules, and flats.
—Ali Faccenda, Travel + Leisure, 21 Nov. 2023
Plus, this flirty vegan leather mini is practically born to be blessed with some tights and knee-high boots.
—Malia Griggs, Glamour, 21 Nov. 2023
For example, the boots are made with WeatherEdge waterproof fabric that will prevent moisture from getting into the boots.
—Chadner Navarro, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Nov. 2023
Porter Simmons, Vogue, 24 Nov. 2023
Johnson was Republicans’ fourth choice to replace Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), who was booted from the speakership in October after passing bipartisan legislation to avert a government shutdown and extend spending laws until this month.
—Marianna Sotomayor, Washington Post, 5 Nov. 2023
Grudge Match Epic’s lawsuit dates back to Fortnite getting booted from the Play store after a stunt in which the company tried to use its own billing tool instead of Google’s to sell in-app purchases.
—Paresh Dave, WIRED, 1 Nov. 2023
Yes, Chaparral called for a fair catch after a punt, allowing Johnson to boot the field goal for the win with no pass rush.
—Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2023
He was also booted from an arena football league for failing to meet its financial obligations as the owner of the Albany Empire.
—Scott Thompson, Fox News, 16 Oct. 2023
Tate, for example, with most of his mainstream channels suspended, has a semi-exclusive presence there, and the same is true for conspiracist accounts like the X22 Report, which became a top performer on the site after getting booted from YouTube for peddling QAnon content.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 11 Oct. 2023
The Razorbacks couldn't manage to penetrate the 20, and Cam Little came on to boot a 39-yard field goal.
—Tom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 12 Nov. 2023
Others are able to boot up the device but don't have access to lock storage, which causes a huge amount of issues.
—Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica, 7 Nov. 2023
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These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'boot.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Noun (1)
Middle English bot, bote "advantage, good, relief, deliverance, redemption, amends, cure," Old English bōt "a making good, repair, relief, deliverance, remedy, improvement, atonement, penance, compensation," going back to Germanic *botō "improvement" — more at better entry 1
Note: Though its Old and Middle English predecessors were common nouns with numerous senses, boot now occurs rarely outside of the idiom to boot. This phrase is attested in the sense "to the advantage (of someone)" in Middle English ("to youre bote") and hence was generalized to "as an extra thing, into the bargain" and then "in addition, moreover."
Verb (1)
Middle English boten "to cure, relieve, add to equalize the value of things exchanged, be of use, avail," probably in part derivative of bot, bote "advantage, good, relief," in part going back to Old English botian "to recover from ill health, keep in repair," derivative of bōt "a making good, repair, relief" — more at boot entry 1
Noun (2)
(senses 1-8) Middle English bote, bot, boot, borrowed from Anglo-French bote (also continental Old French bote, botte), of uncertain origin; (sense 9) noun derivative of boot entry 4, sense 5
Note: The French word is traced to a putative Germanic base *butt- "blunt" in Französisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, along with a diverse group of phonetically similar words, but both the semantic and phonetic assumptions are questionable.
Verb (2)
(senses 1-4) Middle English boten "to put boots on," derivative of bote, bot boot entry 3; (sense 5) short for bootstrap in sense "to perform a bootstrap operation," derivative of bootstrap entry 2
Noun (3)
shortened from booty entry 1, perhaps by association with boot entry 1
Noun (1)
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Verb (1)
15th century, in the meaning defined above
Noun (2)
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Verb (2)
15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Noun (3)
1598, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing boot
Video
Some Odd Words with ISMO: "Junk in the Trunk"
Comedian ISMO on what separates a boot from a trunk
Dictionary Entries Near boot
Cite this Entry
“Boot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/boot. Accessed 1 Dec. 2023.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
boot
1 of 3 nounboot
2 of 3 nounboot
3 of 3 verbNoun
Old English bōt "remedy"
Noun
Middle English boot "a covering for the foot"
Legal Definition
boot
nounNote: Under Internal Revenue Code section 1031, no tax liability results from an exchange solely of like-kind property used in a business or trade or held for investment. If the exchange includes boot, however, under section 1245 the boot will be treated as ordinary income.
Noun
obsolete or dialect boot compensation, from Old English bōt advantage, compensation
More from Merriam-Webster on boot
Nglish: Translation of boot for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of boot for Arabic Speakers
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