1
as in kids
a male person who has not yet reached adulthood
a giggling little boy ran by
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in boyfriends
a male romantic companion
their teenaged daughter has a new boy, and she's just crazy about him
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of boys
The Wilson brothers [Owen and Luke] are Dallas boys.
—
Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 1 Apr. 2026
Jim Varsallone writes a high school sports column twice a week, featuring top performers in all varsity sports (boys and girls) in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.
—James Varsallone, Miami Herald, 1 Apr. 2026
The Colorado Rockies third baseman and his wife are now parents of three boys.
—Kate Hogan, PEOPLE, 1 Apr. 2026
Opt for those boys boxer briefs.
—Mike Snider, USA Today, 1 Apr. 2026
Corona del Mar’s boys volleyball team recently suffered a couple of losses in the Sunset League.
—Steve Fryer, Oc Register, 31 Mar. 2026
Research has linked phthalates with reproductive problems such as genital malformations and undescended testes in baby boys and lower sperm counts and testosterone levels in adult males.
—Sandee Lamotte, CNN Money, 31 Mar. 2026
How to Watch McDonald's All-American Game 2026 The 49th annual event, held at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona, features 24 of the best boys and 24 of the best girls players in the country, all selected from a pool of more than 700 nominees.
—Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026
The series is said to be set at an all-boys boarding school in New England and follows a teacher who is himself an alumnus of the school.
—Joe Otterson, Variety, 25 Mar. 2026
Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 1 Apr. 2026
Jim Varsallone writes a high school sports column twice a week, featuring top performers in all varsity sports (boys and girls) in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.
—James Varsallone, Miami Herald, 1 Apr. 2026
The Colorado Rockies third baseman and his wife are now parents of three boys.
—Kate Hogan, PEOPLE, 1 Apr. 2026
Opt for those boys boxer briefs.
—Mike Snider, USA Today, 1 Apr. 2026
Corona del Mar’s boys volleyball team recently suffered a couple of losses in the Sunset League.
—Steve Fryer, Oc Register, 31 Mar. 2026
Research has linked phthalates with reproductive problems such as genital malformations and undescended testes in baby boys and lower sperm counts and testosterone levels in adult males.
—Sandee Lamotte, CNN Money, 31 Mar. 2026
How to Watch McDonald's All-American Game 2026 The 49th annual event, held at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona, features 24 of the best boys and 24 of the best girls players in the country, all selected from a pool of more than 700 nominees.
—Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026
The series is said to be set at an all-boys boarding school in New England and follows a teacher who is himself an alumnus of the school.
—Joe Otterson, Variety, 25 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for boys
Noun
-
Grab the umbrella, dress the kids in rain gear, and leave extra drive time in the morning.—
Tammie Souza,
CBS News,
27 Mar. 2026
-
This is a fantastic hands-on activity for young kids.—
Lauren Jarvis-Gibson,
Kansas City Star,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
All the girls are now wearing little black shades and flipping their hair about maniacally with a pen in their mouth, while their boyfriends are in backwards Kangol flat-caps and riding bicycles.—
Daisy Jones,
Vogue,
26 Mar. 2026
-
It's become a buzzword lobbed at bad bosses and ex-boyfriends, and leaders across the political spectrum.—
Emma Bowman,
NPR,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
According to attorneys, Coleman, his teammate, and two other teenagers were passing around a gun for fun when it was accidentally fired.—
Adi Guajardo,
CBS News,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Some of those teenagers might not see their folks the rest of the day.—
Connor Letourneau,
San Francisco Chronicle,
28 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Despite some very not-so-subtle hints from yours truly, my past beaus have never gifted me a handbag on Valentine’s Day, either.—
Michelle Baricevic,
InStyle,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The year was 1994, and a handful of Irish lads were gathered at a hotel in Northern Ireland to celebrate Colin Cather’s pending nuptials.—
Abby Ellin,
Washington Post,
14 Mar. 2026
-
Hurzeler had better hope his lads don’t fall behind.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Wednesday’s verdict in Los Angeles on the ninth day of jury deliberations shows the difficulty of ascribing how much social media is to blame for youths suffering varying degrees of distress.—
Bloomberg,
Bloomberg,
25 Mar. 2026
-
When four of its members (Ogoni chiefs — one of whom was my mother’s brother-in-law) were brutally killed by restive Ogoni youths, the government arrested my father and eight of his colleagues.—
Noo Saro-Wiwa,
The Dial,
24 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Boys.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/boys. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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