boost

[boost]

verb (used with object)

1. to lift or raise by pushing from behind or below.

2. to advance or aid by speaking well of; promote.

   She always boosts her hometown.

3. to increase; raise.

   to boost prices;

   to boost the horsepower of the car by 20 percent.

4. to administer a booster shot to.

   Have you and your family been boosted yet?

5. Slang.,  to steal, especially to shoplift.

   Two computers were boosted from the office last night.

verb (used without object)

1. Slang.,  to engage in stealing, especially shoplifting.

noun

1. an upward shove or raise; lift.

2. an increase; rise.

   There's been a tremendous boost in food prices.

   Synonyms: uptick, upswing, upsurge, growth, hike

3. an act, remark, or the like, that helps one's progress, morale, efforts, etc..

   His pep talk was the boost our team needed.

boost

/ buːst /

noun

1. encouragement, improvement, or help

   a boost to morale

2. an upward thrust or push

   he gave him a boost over the wall

3. an increase or rise

   a boost in salary

4. a publicity campaign; promotion

5. the amount by which the induction pressure of a supercharged internal-combustion engine exceeds that of the ambient pressure

verb

1. to encourage, assist, or improve

   to boost morale

2. to lift by giving a push from below or behind

3. to increase or raise

   to boost the voltage in an electrical circuit

4. to cause to rise; increase

   to boost sales

5. to advertise on a big scale

6. to increase the induction pressure of (an internal-combustion engine) above that of the ambient pressure; supercharge

boost

1. A linear map from one reference frame to another in which each coordinate is increased or decreased by an independent constant or linear function. A boost corresponds to a shift of the entire coordinate system without any rotation of its axes.

Word History and Origins

Origin of boost¹

An Americanism dating back to 1815–25; perhaps Scots dialect boose (variant of pouss push ) + (hoi)st

Word History and Origins

Origin of boost¹

C19: of unknown origin

Example Sentences

Hassett is expected to support aggressive rate cuts, raising some concerns that this may end up inadvertently boosting inflationary pressures.

Read more on MarketWatch

Amazon has already made strides to boost its Amazon Web Services business this year, and AWS is largely seen as the stock’s biggest growth driver.

Read more on MarketWatch

Oliver Allen, economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said the gradual easing of tariff-related uncertainty, lower interest rates and an investment boost from tax incentives could lift manufacturing output slightly in the first half of next year.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

It looks like economic pain in China could mean government stimulus from Beijing that could boost Alibaba.

Read more on Barron's

An important macroeconomic factor for crypto traders, like investors in the stock market, has been the question of whether the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in December, easing lending conditions and boosting liquidity.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• addition 
• advance 
• breakthrough 
• expansion 
• hike 
• improvement 
• increment 
• jump 
• lift 
• rise