Adjacent Words

bogeyman definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: an imaginary monster used to frighten children [syn: bogeyman, bugbear, bugaboo, boogeyman, booger]

Merriam Webster's

also bogyman noun Date: 1890 1. a monstrous imaginary figure used in threatening children 2. a terrifying or dreaded person or thing ; bugbear

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. (also bogyman) (pl. -men) a person (real or imaginary) causing fear or difficulty.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(bogeymen) Note: The spellings 'bogey man', and in American English 'boogeyman' are also used. 1. A bogeyman is someone whose ideas or actions are disapproved of by some people, and who is described by them as evil or unpleasant in order to make other people afraid. (mainly BRIT) The media depict him as a left-wing bogeyman. = monster N-COUNT: usu with supp [disapproval] 2. A bogeyman is an imaginary evil spirit. Some parents tell their children that the bogeyman will catch them if they behave badly. N-COUNT: oft the N

Moby Thesaurus

Dracula, Frankenstein, Mumbo Jumbo, Wolf-man, bogey, boggart, bogle, booger, boogerman, boogeyman, bug, bugaboo, bugbear, bugger, fee-faw-fum, frightener, ghost, ghoul, hobgoblin, holy terror, horror, incubus, monster, nightmare, ogre, ogress, phantom, revenant, scarebabe, scarecrow, scarer, specter, succubus, terror, vampire, werewolf