bully
/ˈbʊli/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.87 in modern English
10
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
2
Syllables
4
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A person who is intentionally physically or emotionally cruel to others, especially to those whom they perceive as being vulnerable or of less power or privilege.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
A noisy, blustering, tyrannical person, more insolent than courageous; one who is threatening and quarrelsome.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
Any of various small freshwater or brackishwater fish of the family Eleotridae; sleeper gobies.
Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "A playground bully pushed a girl off the swing."
- "I noticed you being a bully towards people with disabilities."
- "Besides, bullies seldom execute the threats they deal in; and men of trick and cunning are not always men of desperate resolves."
- "And I think the facts are that Beijing is a belligerent bully jealous and envious of what Taiwan has accomplished- mainland China- that's what I get out of all of this."
- "Mr. Fisher returned from town... he had learnt that our opponents intended to shift the scene of operations to the Chats... We understood that they had hired two bullies for the purpose of deciding the matter par voie de fait. Mr Fisher hired two of the same description, who were supposed to be more than a match for the opposition party."
- "The Proclamation Society and the Society for the Suppression of Vice were more concerned with obscene literature […] than with hands-on street battles with prostitutes and their bullies […]."
Etymology
From 1530, as a term of endearment, probably a diminutive ( + -y) of Dutch boel (“lover; brother”), from Middle Dutch boel, boele (“brother; lover”), from Old Dutch *buolo, from Proto-Germanic *bōlô (compare Middle Low German bôle (“brother”), Middle High German buole (“brother; close relative; close relation”) (whence German Buhle (“lover”)), Old English Bōla, Bōlla (personal name), diminutive of expressive *bō- (“brother, father”). Compare also Latvian bālinš (“brother”). More at boy. The term acquired a negative connotation during the 17th century; first ‘noisy, blustering fellow’ then ‘a person who is cruel to others’. Possibly influenced by bull (“male cattle”) or via the ‘prostitute's minder’ sense. The positive senses are dated, but survive in phrases such as bully pulpit.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈbʊli/
- British English: /ˈbʊli/
Usage
- Countable
- Uncountable
- Obsolete
- Transitive verb
- American usage
- Dated
- Slang