Jump To:

• bogan
  bogan

  noun

  a backwater, usually narrow and tranquil.
• Bogan
  Bogan

  noun

  Louise, 1897–1970, U.S. poet.

bogan

¹ American  

[boh-guhn] / ˈboʊ gən /

noun

Northern Maine and Canadian (chiefly Maritimes and Northern New Brunswick).

1. a backwater, usually narrow and tranquil.

2. any narrow stretch of water.

---

Bogan ² American  

[boh-gan, boh-guhn] / boʊˈgæn, ˈboʊ gən /

noun

1. Louise, 1897–1970, U.S. poet.

---

bogan ¹ British  

/ ˈbəʊɡən /

noun

1. a fool

2. a hooligan

---

bogan ² British  

/ ˈbəʊɡən /

noun

1. Also called: logan, pokelogan. (esp in the Maritime Provinces) a sluggish side stream

---

Etymology

Origin of bogan

First recorded in 1895–1900; apparently shortening of pokelogan, perhaps conflated with bog ¹

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bogan Bogan

But Louis argues bogan is the ultimate equaliser as the informal slang works across the social spectrum, whether it's in Australia or the world of Russian aristocrats.

From BBC ● Nov. 14, 2025

Characters in his bogan version say "g'day", friends are "mates" and those with questionable ethics are deemed "shonky".

From BBC ● Nov. 14, 2025

Dr. Laugesen noted that “fauxgan,” or fake bogan, was becoming the bigger insult, while finding your “inner bogan” was an honorable goal, suggesting Australians were eager to reclaim their more unsophisticated past.

From New York Times ● Jun. 19, 2022

Lambie quickly appropriated the insult: “I will use the business contacts, advice and wisdom I’ve gained … to help restore hope and rebuild our beautiful state – not bad for a bogan.’

From US News ● Jul. 22, 2014

Again they double the bend and try to hide; again the canoe overtakes them; and so on, mile after mile, till a stream or bogan flowing into the river offers a road to escape.

From Ways of Wood Folk by Charles Copeland

Economist Vicki Bogan, who wasn’t involved with creating the formula, views it as a useful bridge between academic theory and everyday investors’ needs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 19, 2026

“It might not be perfect, but it gives a solid, kind of directionally correct way to think about your portfolio choice,” said Bogan, a professor at Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 19, 2026

Bogan, a term which first emerged in Australia in the 1980s, initially meant an "unsophisticated and uncultured person" with negative connotations, but not for Louis.

From BBC ● Nov. 14, 2025

"In fact, the number of bird species in the restoration site has gone up dramatically because they love eating all the aquatic insects emerging from the river," Bogan said.

From Salon ● Sep. 3, 2024

From Wooroorooka we followed the road down the river for about twelve miles and reached a station occupied by the sheep of the Bogan River Company.

From Journal of Landsborough's Expedition from Carpentaria In search of Burke and Wills by William Landsborough

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---