noun
Etymology
Origin of boor
First recorded in 1545–55; from Dutch boer or Low German būr (cognate with German Bauer “farmer”), derivative of unattestest Germanic bū- “to dwell, build, cultivate”; -er 1; bond 2
Explanation
A boor is a crude, rude person. Boors lack sophistication and manners. Boors are worse than boring; they’re offensive and repulsive. To be a boor is to be an obnoxious, unsophisticated oaf. A boor would swear in church. A boor would talk too loudly on the train. A boor would get too drunk at a wedding reception. Boors lack manners and taste. When a boor is around, other people want to leave. If you have self-control and culture, you’ll never be accused of being a boor.
Vocabulary lists containing boor
Scrooge, Grinch, and Churl: Wonderful Words for Unpleasant People
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Society and Solitude
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The Legend of Auntie Po
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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.
Is this not the conundrum of our time, and aren’t we fortunate to have this boor reminding us of this with each new episode?
From Salon • Jan. 15, 2026
Most memorable is the exit of Pozzo and Lucky that finds Pozzo slowly pushing Lucky in his wheelchair—illustrating the idea that there remains a bedrock of humanity even in this supercilious boor.
From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 29, 2025
In an instant, his beach route comment did me a huge kindness and made me feel like an incurious boor.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 8, 2024
Julianne Moore is his mother, a humorless scold whose coldness and impatience are seemingly understandable, as her son is such an insufferable boor.
From New York Times • Apr. 26, 2024
Nately’s father was discreet and cultured; this old man was a boor.
From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller
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.
