Boo

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -uː

Origin

Coined to create a loud and startling sound. Compare Latin boō ("to cry aloud, roar, shout").

Full definition of boo

Interjection

1. A loud exclamation intended to scare someone, especially a child. Usually used when one has been hidden from the victim and then suddenly appeared unexpectedly.
2. A word used ironically in a situation where one might have scared someone, but said someone was not scared. Not said as loudly as in definition 1.
3. An exclamation used by a member or many members of an audience, as at a stage play or sports game, to indicate derision or disapproval of what has just occurred.

Noun

1. A derisive shout made to indicate disapproval.
• 2010, December 29, Sam Sheringham, Liverpool 0 - 1 Wolverhampton, ...Hodgson headed down the tunnel with the boos of fans ringing in his ears after an eighth league defeat of the season...
2. (US, slang) A close acquaintance or significant other, derived from French beau.

Verb

1. (intransitive) To shout extended boos derisively.When he took the podium, the crowd booed.
• 2004, The New Yorker, 18 Oct 2004Nobody booed and nobody clapped
2. (transitive) To derisively shout extended boos at.The protesters loudly booed the visiting senator.

Anagrams

• o/b/o
• OOB