as in dreads
something or someone that causes fear or dread especially without reason
doing one's tax returns is a real bugaboo for a lot of people
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Recent Examples of bugaboos
James went down a lengthy list of bugaboos that hurt the Chargers, including but not limited to 14 penalties totaling 107 yards, the Giants’ 7-for-15 efficiency on third downs, a lackluster start that featured deficits of 10-0 and 13-3 in the first half and a failure to force a New York turnover.
—
Elliott Teaford, Oc Register, 28 Sep. 2025
Elliott Teaford, Oc Register, 28 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bugaboos
Noun
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Other introspective angles are explored during Mariano’s audiences with his friend the Pope (Rufin Doh Zeyenouin), a serene Black man with a head crowned by a bundle of silver dreads, who tools around the Vatican on a motorbike.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The series is set in the seemingly idyllic town of Blooming Hills, where unknown forces unleash chilling terrors on local teens.—
Stewart Clarke,
Deadline,
7 Oct. 2025
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But worst of all is the knowledge that all of these terrors were trademarks of the asylums that stowed away those with mental health conditions well into the 20th century.—
James Mercadante,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Anyway, as this supporter told Sky Sports, one of their bugbears is that Chelsea Dagger doesn’t actually have anything to do with Chelsea Football Club.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
8 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Sure, to be entirely historically accurate, negative things like plagues, beheadings and poverty would likely factor in to the villagers’ lives.—
Kate Bradshaw,
Mercury News,
25 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The second rule is that yesterday's allies are tomorrow's enemies, and vice versa.—
Bobby Ghosh,
Time,
16 Oct. 2025
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Blues, who included woke Luddites and other political enemies, would be shut out of the bounty—forced out, in fact.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Walking tour explores the controversies, feuds and spirits that still haunt the grounds of this river city.—
Haadiza Ogwude,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
15 Oct. 2025
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The Nolet family has been perfecting the art of spirits since 1691, when the first copper still fired up in Schiedam, Holland.—
Abby Montanez,
Robb Report,
15 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bugaboos.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bugaboos. Accessed 20 Oct. 2025.
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