boot camp

American  

noun

U.S. Navy, Marines.

boot camps plural

1. a camp for training recruits.

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boot camp British  

noun

1. slang a basic training camp for new recruits to the US Navy or Marine Corps

2. a centre for juvenile offenders, with a strict disciplinary regime, hard physical exercise, and community labour programmes

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• boot camps
  plural

Etymology

Origin of boot camp

An Americanism dating back to 1940–45

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

boot camp

The CBC in those days was a bit like a boot camp for television.

From Salon ● Jul. 5, 2026

I imagine there was wrestling boot camp involved here?

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 15, 2026

One way to free up monthly cash flow is by adjusting how much you’re withholding in taxes, Joy, who runs the money boot camp “Crush Your Money Goals,” says.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 20, 2026

Oddly enough, the most effective sequences in “Beast of War” are on land—an Australian boot camp where, in 1942, soldiers are training, and characters are being developed.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 15, 2026

Knowing him, he’d probably send me right to military school or some kind of boot camp, like Scared Straight.

From "All American Boys" by Jason Reynolds