booby

1 of 2

noun (1)

boo·​by ˈbü-bē 

plural boobies

1

: an awkward foolish person : dope

2

: any of several tropical seabirds (genus Sula) of the gannet family

booby

2 of 2

noun (2)

boo·​by ˈbü-bē  ˈbu̇- 

plural boobies

sometimes vulgar

: breast

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• berk [British]
• charlie [British]
• charley
• cuckoo
• ding-a-ling
• ding-dong
• dingbat
• dipstick
• doofus [slang]
• featherhead
• fool
• git [British]
• goose
• half-wit
• jackass
• lunatic
• mooncalf
• nincompoop
• ninny
• ninnyhammer
• nit [chiefly British]
• nitwit
• nut
• nutcase
• simp
• simpleton
• turkey
• yo-yo

Examples of booby in a Sentence

Noun (1)

what kind of booby goes out into the snow barefoot?

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

modification of Spanish bobo, from Latin balbus stammering, probably of imitative origin

Noun (2)

alteration of bubby

First Known Use

Noun (1)

circa 1600, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1916, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

booby

noun

boo·​by

ˈbü-bē

plural boobies

1

: a foolish person

2

: any of several tropical seabirds related to the gannets