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boy¹ /bɔɪ/ n 1 a young male person: Our new baby is a boy. |
'Come here, boy!' shouted the old man. | There's a new boy in
our class at school. | a boy actor → see CHILD (USAGE) 2 a son,
especially a young one: My little boy hates sausages. | We've
got two boys and one girl. 3 [often in comb.] a boy or man
working at a particular job: a cowboy | a delivery-boy | an
office boy 4 infml, especially AmE a male person of any age from
a particular place: The people are proud of the local boy who
became President. 5 becoming rare (now considered offensive)
a male servant of any age 6 old-fash or humor (used in forming
phrases for addressing men): Thank you, my boy/dear boy/
old boy. 7 boys will be boys saying it is in the character of
boys to do rough and dangerous things 8 what are little
boys made of? a line from a NURSERY RHYME (=an old song
or poem for children). The answer is 'slugs and snails and
puppy dogs' tails'. → see also what are little girls made of?
(GIRL); see also BOYS, BLUE-EYED BOY, OLD BOY, PRINCIPAL
BOY, WHIPPING BOY, WIDE BOY
boy² interj infml, especially AmE (expressing excitement): Boy, what
a game!
'boy band n a POP GROUP consisting of attractive young men
who sing, dance, and make records. Boy bands are especially
popular with teenage girls and GAYS.
boy·cott /'bɔɪkɒt||-kɑːt/ v [T] to refuse to do business with,
attend, or take part in, as a way of showing disapproval and
opposition: They're boycotting the shop because the people
there are on strike. | to boycott a meeting →boycott n: to
declare a boycott
Boycott, Geof·frey /'dʒɒfri/ 1940-) an English CRICKETER,
born in Yorkshire, who was a very successful BATSMAN and
played for Yorkshire and the English national team for over
twenty years. He later became a cricket COMMENTATOR and is
known for his strong opinions about the game.
boy·friend /'bɔɪfrend/ n 1 a frequent or regular male friend
of a girl or woman, to whom she is not married. The word is
used especially when talking about the relationships of
young people. Older people usually prefer to use the word
'partner' or 'friend'. 2 euph a male lover
Boy 'George (1961-) a British popular music singer and
songwriter who became successful with the group Culture
Club in the early 1980s, and was known for wearing large
hats, loose-fitting clothes, and lot of MAKE-UP. His songs
include Do you Really Want to Hurt Me? and Karma Cha-
meleon. Boy George later became a successful DISC JOCKEY.
boy·hood /'bɔɪhʊd/ n [C usually sing.:U] the state or time of
being a young boy → see also CHILDHOOD, GIRLHOOD
boy·ish /'bɔɪ-ɪʃ/ adj often apprec. of or like a boy, especially in
appearance: his boyish charm | her boyish figure →-ly adv
→-ness n [U]
Boyne, the Battle of the /bɔɪn/ a famous battle in 1690
near the River Boyne in Ireland, in which Britain's Protes-
tant King William III defeated the former King James II (a
Catholic), and finally ended the attempts by the Catholic
part of the royal family to rule in Britain. It is still celebrated
by Protestants in Northern Ireland as a great victory over the
Catholics.
boys /bɔɪz/ n [the P] infml a man's male friends; a group of
men: to spend a night out with the boys
Boys' Bri,gade, the an organization which was set up in
Britain in 1883 to encourage boys to develop team spirit and
responsible behaviour
boy 'scout /' . ./ n a SCOUT
boy·sen·ber·ry /'bɔɪzənbəri||-beri/ n a fruit similar to the
BLACKBERRY
Boys' 'Own adj used to describe men doing brave, exciting
things, like a HERO in an adventure story: His life story is like
a non-stop Boy's Own adventure.
CULTURAL NOTE The Boys' Own Paper was a boys'
magazine that was sold in the late 19th century and early
20th century in Britain. It contained exciting adventure
stories. and people now use the expression to describe
someone who does exciting things and whose life is full of
adventure
Boyz Il Men /,bɔɪz tu: 'men/ a US BOY BAND (=a pop group
with attractive young men in it) who perform RHYTHM AND
BLUES music. Their songs include End of the Road and I'll
Make Love to You.
Boy·zone /'bɔɪzəʊn/ an Irish BOY BAND (=a pop group with
attractive young men in it) who were very popular in the
late 1990s. Their songs include All That I Need and Love Me
for a Reason. Their most famous member is Ronan Keating,
who has recorded his own albums and worked as a television
PRESENTER.
bo·zo /'bəʊzəʊ/ n pl. -zos slang, especially AmE a person who is
stupid or foolish, or who behaves like a CLOWN
BP /,bi: 'piː/ trademark 1 abbrev. for British Petroleum; a British
company producing petrol and chemicals. In 1998, BP
joined with the US oil company Amoco to form BP Amoco,
one of the largest companies in the world 2 British Pharma-
copeia; a book listing drugs with their uses etc, as approved
by the British medical bodies
BPhil /,bi: 'fɪl/ n Bachelor of Philosophy; a university degree
at a level higher than a BA or MA, but lower than a PhD.
BPhil is written after someone's name to show that they
have this degree: O.P. Sharma, BPhil
B.P.O.E. /,bi: pi: əʊ 'i:/ written abbrev. for The Benevolent and
Protective Order of Elks → see ELK
BR /,bi: 'ɑːr/ abbrev. for BRITISH RAIL
bra /brɑː/ also brassiere fml — n a woman's close-fitting
undergarment worn to support the breasts
CULTURAL NOTE In the 1960s many women who
supported the WOMEN'S LIBERATION movement burnt their
bras as a protest.
brace¹ /breɪs/ n 1 BrE || braces AmE a frame made of metal
wires, which some children wear on their teeth to make
them grow straight 2 something that is worn or used to
support something: She had to wear a neck brace for 6
weeks. 3 a brace of something two birds or animals that
have been killed for food or sport: three brace of pheas-
ants 4 one of a pair of signs { } used to show that the
information printed between them should be considered
together
brace² v [T] 1 to make stronger, especially by supporting
with a brace: We had to brace the walls when we put the new
roof on. 2 [(for)] to prepare (yourself) for something unpleas-
ant or difficult: Brace yourself for a shock! | The country is
bracing itself for the threatened enemy invasion.
,brace and 'bit n a simple hand tool used for making holes
in wood
brace·let /'breɪslɪt/ n a band or ring worn round the wrist
or arm as a decoration: a gold bracelet → compare BANGLE
braces /'breɪsɪz/ n [P] 1 BrE || suspenders AmE two long thin
pieces of cloth that stretch over someone's shoulders and
fasten to their trousers at the front and back, to stop the
trousers falling down → see PAIR (USAGE) 2 especially AmE ||
brace BrE a frame made of metal wires, which some children
wear on their teeth to make them grow straight: Tara's
getting braces.
brac·ing /'breɪsɪŋ/ adj apprec. (especially of air) fresh and
health-giving; invigorating (INVIGORATE): a bracing sea
breeze | a bracing climate
brack·en /'brækən/ n [U] a plant (a kind of FERN) which
commonly grows in woods and forests, on hills etc, and
becomes a rich red-brown in autumn
brack·et¹ /'brækɪt/ n 1 a structure of metal, wood, or
plastic, often in the shape of a right angle, fixed to a wall to
support something, such as a shelf or lamp 2 [usually pl.] a)
also square bracket — either of the pair of signs [ ] used for
enclosing a piece of information: to put something in brack-
ets b) also angle bracket — either of the pair of signs <>
used for enclosing a piece of information c) also round
bracket — either of the pair of signs ( ); PARENTHESIS →
compare BRACE¹ 3 a group or class fixed according to
certain upper and lower limits: The party is popular with the
18–25 age bracket.
bracket² v [T] 1 [(OFF)] to enclose in brackets 2 [(TOGETHER,
with)] to regard, perhaps wrongly, as belonging to the same
group or type: In his article, the peace protesters were unfairly
bracketed with the football hooligans.