boulder

noun

boul·​der ˈbōl-dər 

variants or less commonly bowlder

: a detached and rounded or much-worn mass of rock

bouldered

ˈbōl-dərd 

adjective

bouldery

ˈbōl-d(ə-)rē 

adjective

Examples of boulder in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

And that goes perfectly well with the boulders of humans in Bobby Brown III and Derrick Brown alongside him. —Charlotte Observer, 8 July 2025

The area around the summer camp was destroyed — boulders in the middle of the road, huge trees uprooted and homes decimated. —Sergio Martínez-Beltrán, NPR, 7 July 2025

From coal miners to people stuck in cubicles all day, being trapped in soul-numbing tasks reminds us all of that boulder. —John Wiswell, People.com, 3 July 2025

Several large rocks and boulders plunged from the overhang at the top of a popular Utah waterfall — and just barely missed a family swimming below, video shows. —Brooke Baitinger, Sacbee.com, 26 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

short for boulder stone, from Middle English bulder ston, partial translation of a word of Scandinavian origin; akin to Swedish dialect bullersten large stone in a stream, from buller noise + sten stone

First Known Use

1607, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for boulder

• bolder
• bowlder
• colder
• folder
• golder
• holder
• molder
• moulder
• older
• polder
• shoulder
• beholder

Kids Definition

boulder

noun

boul·​der ˈbōl-dər 

: a large detached and rounded or worn mass of rock

Geographical Definition

Boulder

geographical name

Boul·​der ˈbōl-dər 

city northwest of Denver in north central Colorado population 97,385