boot camp

noun

1

: a navy or marine corps camp for basic training

2

: a disciplinary facility or program in which young offenders are forced to participate in a rigidly structured routine

3

: a place or undertaking that resembles a military boot camp especially by requiring one to endure intensive training or initiation

Nowadays, the more talented players view their college years as necessary boot camp to prepare them for the riches waiting for them in pro football.

—Anson Mount

These youngsters are put through what amounts to a boot camp of courses in music notation, basic harmony and ear-training.

—Smithsonian

Examples of boot camp in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

By Any Means is the second narrative feature from Elegance Bratton, whose 2022 debut was the semi-autobiographical The Inspection, a film about a gay Black man’s experiences enlisting in the Marines and going through boot camp. — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 4 Sep. 2026

Participants perform duck walks, suitcase carries, bear crawls and overhead holds reminiscent of the log and boat carries in Marine boot camps. — Jenna Belhumeur, Los Angeles Times, 3 Sep. 2026

Around 2004, his mother met Ron Wong, a political consultant who had started a boot camp for Asian Americans interested in getting into politics. — Gene Maddaus, Variety, 2 Sep. 2026

In some ways, the process echoes what an Army recruit would go through in boot camp. — M. R. O’Connor, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1916, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for boot camp

• decamp
• encamp
• headlamp
• preamp
• revamp
• timestamp
• amp
• champ
• clamp
• cramp
• damp
• gamp

Kids Definition

boot camp

noun

: a camp where recently enlisted members of the Navy or Marine Corps receive their basic training