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
My older boy just got married.
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
And her phone’s camera roll is mostly filled with photos and videos of her smiling baby boy.
—Jeremy Diamond, CNN Money, 13 June 2026
An officer saved a missing boy from a near drowning on Friday after finding the youngster partially submerged, disoriented, and in immediate danger near the shoreline, according to the Fort Worth Police Department.
—Doug Myers, CBS News, 13 June 2026
The Ipswich boys lacrosse team was undefeated prior to its forfeiture.
—Ryan Canfield Outkick, FOXNews.com, 12 June 2026
The Healys go through the everyday motions until Frankie complicates her relationship with Jo (Mickey Hanano Skinner) by catching the eye of handsome new boy Phoenix (Mario Houle).
—Charles Lewis Iii, Mercury News, 12 June 2026
Swedish investigators said the shooter was no professional assassin – but another teenage boy who had been recruited to kill.
—ABC News, 12 June 2026
Dragon Striker is about a boy named Key who plays a soccer-like sport called gorotama.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 12 June 2026
In total, six babies were born — there were three girls and three boys.
—Hannah Sacks, PEOPLE, 12 June 2026
The scene of the two boys discussing Kayda is kind of funny, especially the number of times Zach laughs and encourages Bryce to go for it.
—Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 12 June 2026
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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Jeremy Diamond, CNN Money, 13 June 2026
An officer saved a missing boy from a near drowning on Friday after finding the youngster partially submerged, disoriented, and in immediate danger near the shoreline, according to the Fort Worth Police Department.
—Doug Myers, CBS News, 13 June 2026
The Ipswich boys lacrosse team was undefeated prior to its forfeiture.
—Ryan Canfield Outkick, FOXNews.com, 12 June 2026
The Healys go through the everyday motions until Frankie complicates her relationship with Jo (Mickey Hanano Skinner) by catching the eye of handsome new boy Phoenix (Mario Houle).
—Charles Lewis Iii, Mercury News, 12 June 2026
Swedish investigators said the shooter was no professional assassin – but another teenage boy who had been recruited to kill.
—ABC News, 12 June 2026
Dragon Striker is about a boy named Key who plays a soccer-like sport called gorotama.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 12 June 2026
In total, six babies were born — there were three girls and three boys.
—Hannah Sacks, PEOPLE, 12 June 2026
The scene of the two boys discussing Kayda is kind of funny, especially the number of times Zach laughs and encourages Bryce to go for it.
—Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 12 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Boy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/boy. Accessed 14 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
boy
noun1
: a male child from birth to young manhood
2
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
