bogey

noun

variants also bogie or bogy
Definition of bogeynext
1
as in dread
something or someone that causes fear or dread especially without reason math and math tests have long been bogeys for many students

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in ghost
the soul of a dead person thought of especially as appearing to living people the child believed bogeys lived in the closet

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bogey Quackenbush, a 55-year-old resident of Aiken, South Carolina, carded an even-par 70 by mixing two birdies with two bogeys. — Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 31 Aug. 2026 With a bogey-free 66 on Saturday, Scheffler moved into a tie for third heading into the final round at East Lake, three shots behind leader Viktor Hovland. — Gabby Herzig, New York Times, 30 Aug. 2026 The 42-year-old Topeka native had two birdies, a bogey and six pars on the front nine, making the turn at 1-under 34. — Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 28 Aug. 2026 Whaley holed a nervy 5-foot bogey putt on the 18th hole to defeat Georgia senior Carter Loflin. — Mercury News Staff, Mercury News, 16 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for bogey
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bogey
  1. dread
  2. ghost
  3. terror
  4. apparition
  5. bugaboo
  6. spirit
  7. enemy
  8. phantom
Noun
  • The singer-songwriter’s seventh album is their wackiest and funniest to date, with a madcap gleam coursing through its synth-pop portraits of lovable weirdos and suburban dread.
    — Zach Schonfeld, Pitchfork, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Moton lingered on the turf for a while, punching the turf in pain and dread, before a cart came out to transport him to the locker room.
    — Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of dread
Noun
  • Spirit Airlines' ghost planes The problems with young retirements predate Spirit's collapse.
    — Leslie Josephs, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026
  • In 2026, the gemlike Brooklyn venue lent Kushner’s project a magical quality, turning the audience into ghosts from the future, eavesdropping on the fall of the Weimar Republic but unable to intervene.
    — Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of ghost
Noun
  • French President Emmanuel Macron called the shooting a racist terror attack, saying people were targeted due to their religion and the color of their skin.
    — Mithil Aggarwal, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Iran's proxy gang - the Yemeni terror group known as the Houthis - has recently killed civilians in Saudi Arabia with attacks on the airport.
    — Brian Sullivan, CNBC, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of terror
Noun
  • The spacecraft encounters transformed a disappointing naked-eye apparition into a landmark scientific campaign.
    — Joe Rao, Space.com, 13 Oct. 2026
  • One is Eye Witness (1987), a wintry landscape of two figures who seem to look away from an apparition of sorts; a skyscraper in the distance bears a resemblance to the Empire State Building.
    — Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of apparition
Noun
  • Staying on the field has been his biggest bugaboo with the Red Sox.
    — Jen McCaffrey, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026
  • This thing of like trying to paint a certain type or color or class of people as the enemy and the great bugaboo in America?
    — Jim Ryan, Forbes.com, 25 June 2026
Definition of bugaboo
Noun
  • After all, many a good cause got its start from a spirit of noblesse oblige.
    — Diane Brady, Fortune, 20 Oct. 2026
  • But the ending hints at the possibility that the spirit of Jason may have leapt into the youngster.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of spirit
Noun
  • Compassion doesn’t mean that presidents or other public officials should bow to enemies or surrender common sense in tackling the world’s harsh realities.
    — Kathleen Parker, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026
  • And despite huge military spending, Saudi forces have struggled to deter their enemies.
    — Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of enemy
Noun
  • Fadal brought up her own phantom smells during a recent podcast conversation with Andrea Donsky, a nutritionist who’s written about and conducted research on this symptom.
    — Maggie Ryan, Flow Space, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Both phantoms were packed with thousands of dosimeters, tracking radiation dose over specific phases of the flight rather than just a cumulative total.
    — Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of phantom

Browse Nearby Words

bog (down)
bogey
bogeyman
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bogey.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bogey. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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