bogeyman

noun

bo·​gey·​man ˈbu̇-gē-ˌman  ˈbō- 

ˈbü-,

ˈbu̇-gər- 

variants or less commonly bogyman

1

: a monstrous imaginary figure used in threatening children

2

: a terrifying or dreaded person or thing : bugbear

Examples of bogeyman in a Sentence

My aunt used to say to my sister and me, “The bogeyman will get you if you're bad.”

a politician who is the familiar bogeyman of conservatives

Recent Examples on the Web

Keynes, the seminal advocate of government intervention in times of economic unrest, was a longtime bogeyman for small-government conservatives. —Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 2 Dec. 2024

Fracking is not the bogeyman that has been pushed and misrepresented by zealous groups of anti-frackers. —Ian Dexter Palmer, Forbes, 27 Oct. 2024

After the 2023 Supreme Court ruling, which deemed affirmative action in university admissions unconstitutional, attacks on DEI proliferated, and the term became a right-wing bogeyman blamed for almost anything that goes wrong in any workplace. —Kizzy Cox, Essence, 11 Feb. 2025

Justin Baldoni would seem to be a bogeyman for America’s right wing. —Gary Baum, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1890, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for bogeyman

• businessman
• canavan
• caravan
• constantan
• dragoman
• fisherman
• handyman
• harmattan
• journeyman
• marianne
• middleman
• minivan

Kids Definition

bogeyman

noun

bo·​gey·​man ˈbu̇g-ē-ˌman  ˈbō-gē- 

ˈbü-gē-

1

: an imaginary monster used in threatening children

2

: a terrifying or dreaded person or thing