bop

¹ American  

[bop] / bɒp /

noun

1. Also called bebop. early modern jazz developed in the early 1940s and characterized by often dissonant triadic and chromatic chords, fast tempos and eccentric rhythms, intricate melodic lines punctuated by pop-tune phrases, and emphasizing the inventiveness of soloists.

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verb (used without object)

bopped, bopping

1. Slang. to move, go, or proceed (often followed byon down ).

   Let's bop on down to the party.

bop ² American  

[bop] / bɒp /

verb (used with object)

bopped, bopping

1. to strike, as with the fist or a stick; hit.

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noun

1. a blow.

bop ¹ British  

/ bɒp /

noun

1. Originally called: bebop. a form of jazz originating in the 1940s, characterized by rhythmic and harmonic complexity and instrumental virtuosity

2. informal a session of dancing to pop music

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verb

1. informal (intr) to dance to pop music

bop ² British  

/ bɒp /

verb

1. (tr) to strike; hit

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noun

1. a blow

Other Word Forms

• bopper
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of bop¹

1945–50, (be)bop

Origin of bop²

First recorded in 1935–40; variant of bob ³

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Explanation

If you bop your little brother, you hit him lightly. If you do this, he's probably going to bop you right back. The origin of the word bop is imitative: bop sounds like the noise your hand makes when you bop someone or something. You can also use bop to mean bebop, the fast-tempo jazz that became popular in the 1940s, after the swing era. The word comes from the jazz tradition of singing nonsense words like bebop and rebop.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bop bopped bopping

The curvilinear bop of a good and expertly undulating narrative lede.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026

The company says its "companion-centric" device can interpret human gestures and bop to musical rhythms, as well as take selfies and steady videos.

From Barron's ● Jul. 19, 2026

Still, this was music one could bop their head to, even if dance parties were limited during the global pandemic.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026

He adds a funky countermelody, reminiscent of Horace Silver or Lee Morgan, and remakes “Billy Joe” into a remarkable slice of hard bop, a 12-minute roller-coaster ride.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 1, 2026

And they all laugh and bop and clap and smile.

From "Sunny" by Jason Reynolds

In a sparkly gold dress, the 20-year-old floated above the pressure, bopped along to the music of Donna Summer and glided her way to stardom—and the top of the podium.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 23, 2026

Szabolcs Csépe, from Budapest, bopped to over 3000 songs and burned more than 22,000 calories in his quest to romp into the record books.

From BBC ● Nov. 11, 2025

For years, Justine Lupe bopped back and forth between Los Angeles and New York.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 27, 2024

He did a nine-month tour in Afghanistan before leaving the Army, then bopped between a few jobs before returning to the familiarity of working with his dad.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 29, 2023

Fred darted his nose under her arm and nearly got bopped on the head with her coconut-breaking rock.

From "Nim’s Island" by Wendy Orr

It’s hard to disagree that the current system, with quarterbacks bopping from campus to campus like jam bands and 26-year-olds lining up against 18-year-olds, needs revision.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 9, 2026

These bubbly creatures seemed to float by on the positive energy of the crowd, sometimes blithely bopping along, sometimes stopping to take photos with enthusiastic fellow inflatable-wearers.

From Slate ● Oct. 19, 2025

It’s the uniform of Echevarria’s youth on the East Coast, bopping between the suburbs and Manhattan.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2024

I like to think of this as the "Little Bunny Foo Foo" method, because it's like you’re scooping up all the people and bopping them on the head.

From Salon ● Jul. 14, 2024

“Thank you, Dr. Z!” said Mr. Lemoncello, bopping the button to make the audience cheer again.

From "Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library" by Chris Grabenstein

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