bogeyman
See also: bogey man
English
editAlternative forms
editEtymology
editPronunciation
edit- (UK) IPA(key): /ˈbəʊ.ɡɪˌmæn/, /ˈbəʊ.ɡiˌmæn/
Audio (Southern England): (file) - (US) IPA(key): /ˈboʊ.ɡiˌmæn/, /ˈbʊɡ.iˌmæn/, /ˈbu.ɡiˌmæn/
- (Canada) IPA(key): /ˈbu.ɡiˌmæn/
Noun
editbogeyman (plural bogeymen)
- A menacing, ghost-like monster in children's stories.
- 2003, “Pet”, performed by A Perfect Circle:
- Lay your head down child
I won't let the boogeyman come
Counting bodies like sheep
To the rhythm of the war drums
Pay no mind to the rabble
Pay no mind to the rabble
Head down, go to sleep
To the rhythm of the war drums
- (by extension) Any make-believe threat, especially one used to intimidate or distract.
- 2013, Frances Booth, The Distraction Trap:
- Before the Internet it was television. And, if not that, it was radio, films, or games. All have taken their turn as the popular bogeyman, blighting the minds of the young.
- 2020 November 18, Brian Lowry, “‘Soros’ looks at the life and activism of the right’s favorite bogeyman”, in CNN[2]:
- If there’s a down side to the film, it’s that “Soros” probably doesn’t devote enough time to the way its subject has become a favorite bogeyman to conservatives that paint him as the guiding hand behind grassroots campaigns by those intent on discrediting them.
Synonyms
editTranslations
editmenacing, ghost-like monster in children's stories
|
any make-believe threat