bore

1 of 6

verb (1)

ˈbȯr 

bored; boring

transitive verb

1

: to pierce with a turning or twisting movement of a tool

bore a wooden post

2

: to make by boring or digging away material

bored a tunnel

use a drill to bore a hole through the board

intransitive verb

1

a

: to make a hole by or as if by boring

insects that bore into trees

b

: to sink a mine shaft or well

boring for oil

2

: to make one's way steadily especially against resistance

We bored through the jostling crowd.

bore

2 of 6

noun (1)

1

a

: a usually cylindrical hole made by or as if by the turning or twisting movement of a tool : a hole made by or as if by boring (see bore entry 1)

b

chiefly Australia and New Zealand : a borehole drilled especially to make an artesian well

2

a

: the long usually cylindrical hollow part of something (such as a tube or gun barrel)

b

: the inner surface of a hollow cylindrical object

3

: the size of a bore: such as

a

: the interior diameter of a gun barrel

especially, chiefly British : gauge sense 1a(2)

a .22 bore revolver

b

: the diameter of an engine cylinder

bore

3 of 6

past tense of bear

bore

4 of 6

noun (2)

: a tidal flood with a high abrupt front

a dangerous bore at the mouth of the Amazon

bore

5 of 6

noun (3)

: one that causes weariness and restlessness through lack of interest : one that causes boredom: such as

a

: a dull or tiresome person

His friends are a bunch of bores.

b

: something that is devoid of interest

The lecture was a total bore.

bore

6 of 6

verb

bored; boring

transitive verb

: to cause to feel weariness and restlessness through lack of interest : to cause to feel boredom

trying not to bore your audience

got bored by the party and left

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• drill
• hole
• perforate
• pierce
• punch
• puncture
• riddle

Noun (3)

• drag
• drip
• droner
• dullsville
• nudnik
• nudnick
• snooze
• snoozer
• yawn
• yawner

Verb

• jade
• tire
• weary

Examples of bore in a Sentence

Verb (1)

some woodpecker bored holes in our tree in the backyard

with some effort, she bored through the throng of yelling protestors

Noun (3)

for once, the graduation speaker wasn't a real bore

Verb

the professor's lifeless and unimaginative teaching style bored the students to death

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

And the normally stoic and (to a child) boring Frank McGee and Walter Cronkite reinforced our fears and confusion by tearfully repeating that that afternoon JFK had been shot and killed. —Jody Mamone, Hartford Courant, 22 Nov. 2024

Birnbaum couldn’t have grasped at the time how fundamentally and importantly boring so much of Murakami’s writing is. —Bailey Trela, Vulture, 19 Nov. 2024

Noun

All the windows on the right side of the bus were cracked and those near the front of the bus bore gaping holes. —Tony Plohetski, Austin American-Statesman, 22 Mar. 2024

Since 2016, officials studied and selected single bore, receiving federal environmental clearance. —Dan Phan, The Mercury News, 12 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English boren, going back to Old English borian, going back to Germanic *bur-ō- (whence Old High German borōn "to pierce," Old Norse bora), probably verbal derivative of a noun base bur- "tool for piercing" (whence Old English bor "chiseling instrument," Old High German bora); akin to Latin forāre "to bore," ferīre "to strike"

Noun (1)

Middle English, "hole, perforation," in part noun derivative of boren "to bore entry 1," in part borrowed from Old Norse bora "borehole," derivative of bora "to bore"

Noun (2)

Middle English *bore wave, from Old Norse bāra

Noun (3)

of uncertain origin

Note: Plausibly a derivative of the verb bore entry 6, if this was a sense development of bore entry 1 ("to drill, wear at" & "to induce ennui"); however, the noun, a vogue word among London political and cultural figures in the 1760's, appears to predate the verb.

Verb

perhaps verbal derivative of bore entry 5 if the noun is earlier

Note: See note at bore entry 5.

First Known Use

Verb (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

1601, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

1766, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1768, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing bore

• full bore
• small-bore

Kids Definition

bore

1 of 6 verb

ˈbō(ə)r 

ˈbȯ(ə)r

bored; boring

1

: to make a hole in especially with a drill

2

: to make (as a hole shaped like a cylinder) by boring or digging away material

bore a well

3

: to move forward steadily especially by overcoming an opposing force

the plane bored through the storm

bore

2 of 6 noun

1

: a hole made by or as if by boring

2

: a cavity (as in a gun barrel) shaped like a cylinder

3

: the diameter of a hole or tube

especially : the interior diameter of a gun barrel

bore

3 of 6

past of bear

bore

4 of 6 noun

: a tidal flood with a high abrupt front

bore

5 of 6 noun

: an uninteresting person or thing

bore

6 of 6 verb

bored; boring

: to make weary and restless by being dull or monotonous

Etymology

Verb

Old English borian "to bore"

Noun

probably of Norse origin

Noun

origin unknown

Medical Definition

bore

1 of 2

past of bear

bore

2 of 2 noun

ˈbō(ə)r, ˈbȯ(ə)r 

1

: the long usually cylindrical hollow part of something (as a tube or artery)

2

: the internal diameter of a tube (as a hypodermic needle, catheter, or sound)

a small-bore catheter

Legal Definition

bore

past of bear