plural boys
often attributive
1
a(1)
: a male child from birth to adulthood
a ten-year-old boy
(2)
: a child whose gender identity is male
Author Kyle Lukoff told Newsweek, Call Me Max and other books in the series are about a young trans boy figuring out who he is, making new friends, and sharing about himself with his family and community.—
Samantha Lock
Samantha Lock
b
: son
Even though it made them uncomfortable to have their boy talked about all over town, secretly, Nick's mom and dad were pleased.—Andrew Clements
Andrew Clements
c
: an immature male
separate the men from the boys
a boy genius
2
3
chiefly US slang
: a close male friend
Now, the receiver is getting a second chance, thanks to old friend Tom Brady. "Tom is my boy," [Antonio] Brown said Wednesday during his introductory video press conference in Tampa.—Michael Hurley
Michael Hurley4
: a male domesticated animal and especially a pet
Leo is a 2-year-old pit bull mix. … He loves receiving attention, getting pets and being told he is a good boy.—The Denver Post
The Denver PostJean Greening greets the birds in the aviary with whistles, kissing noises, and the phrase, "Who's a pretty boy?"—Current Science
Current Science5
a
dated, offensive
: a male servant or an enslaved man
b
disparaging + offensive
—used to address a man of color and especially a Black man
Note: The deeply offensive use of the word boy to address an adult man of color has a strong association with sense 5a and is a term expressive of racist condescension.
Examples of boy in a Sentence
It's a boy! She gave birth to a baby boy this morning.
a nine-year-old boy named David
Okay, boys and girls, it's time to play a game.
Is this your little boy?
That's my boy! Good job, Son.
a group of teenage boys
My parents want me to meet a nice boy and get married.
Don't be so hard on him. He's just a boy.
a poor boy from the north
Wait till the boys back home hear about this!
Recent Examples on the Web
The second tallest, a boy, looks at the camera with the steady gaze of a future class president.
—Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 25 Oct. 2025
Decades later, it was revealed the young boy grew up to have a completely normal adulthood.
—Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 25 Oct. 2025
The box office and streaming success of the project has launched real K-pop groups on TikTok to recreate the film’s fictional boy group Saja Boys.
—Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 24 Oct. 2025
The five-minute mash-up rapidly intercuts scenes of happy domesticity (a loving mother, kids in face paint eating popcorn in front of the tube, teens affectionately goofing around) with gruesome murders committed by a beautiful little boy.
—David Wingrave, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
The central story of a young boy learning rituals from elders prompts universal questions about how spirituality can guide and limit our lives.
—Christian Blauvelt, IndieWire, 24 Oct. 2025
In 1918, nine boys were detained in Kansas City for waxing streetcar tracks that caused a crash and injury, The Topeka Capital-Journal reported.
—Chris Kenning, USA Today, 24 Oct. 2025
Ulrich was attracted to the role of Sidney Prescott's (Neve Campbell) boyfriend because the character wasn't written as the stereotypical boy-next-door.
—Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 24 Oct. 2025
Instead, there is golden boy Aaron, WWII pilot Toby, short king Iain, lanky Disney prince Tom, and Jasmine, for whom there are no words.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 25 Oct. 2025
Decades later, it was revealed the young boy grew up to have a completely normal adulthood.
—Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 25 Oct. 2025
The box office and streaming success of the project has launched real K-pop groups on TikTok to recreate the film’s fictional boy group Saja Boys.
—Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 24 Oct. 2025
The five-minute mash-up rapidly intercuts scenes of happy domesticity (a loving mother, kids in face paint eating popcorn in front of the tube, teens affectionately goofing around) with gruesome murders committed by a beautiful little boy.
—David Wingrave, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
The central story of a young boy learning rituals from elders prompts universal questions about how spirituality can guide and limit our lives.
—Christian Blauvelt, IndieWire, 24 Oct. 2025
In 1918, nine boys were detained in Kansas City for waxing streetcar tracks that caused a crash and injury, The Topeka Capital-Journal reported.
—Chris Kenning, USA Today, 24 Oct. 2025
Ulrich was attracted to the role of Sidney Prescott's (Neve Campbell) boyfriend because the character wasn't written as the stereotypical boy-next-door.
—Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 24 Oct. 2025
Instead, there is golden boy Aaron, WWII pilot Toby, short king Iain, lanky Disney prince Tom, and Jasmine, for whom there are no words.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Boy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/boy. Accessed 27 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
boy
noun1
: a male child from birth to young manhood
2
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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