boogeyman
Americannoun
plural
boogeymenEtymology
Origin of boogeyman
First recorded in 1840–50
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Artificial intelligence could be the boogeyman that gnaws at market share.
From Barron's • Feb. 4, 2026
And it would give the Bills another chance to really get over their boogeyman.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 3, 2025
"I wasn't satisfied with just imagining this evil boogeyman who had done a horrible thing to me," she explained.
From Salon • Apr. 14, 2025
With Moses as boogeyman, we are spared the more challenging question: Why did his worst decisions seem like such great ideas to so many people in the first place?
From Slate • Sep. 16, 2024
The boogeyman has disappeared, but that doesn’t stop the pain.
From "Like Vanessa" by Tami Charles
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
