boycott
verb (used with object)
to combine in abstaining from, or preventing dealings with, as a means of intimidation or coercion.
Trivia Time
Who gave their name to the word boycott?
boycott
American
[boi-kot]
/ หbษษช kษt /
verb (used with object)
-
boycotts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
boycotted,
past participle, past
-
boycotting
present participle
-
to combine in abstaining from, or preventing dealings with, as a means of intimidation or coercion.
to boycott a store.
-
to abstain from buying or using.
to boycott foreign products.
noun
-
boycotts
plural
-
the practice of boycotting.
-
an instance of boycotting.
boycott
1
British
/ หbษษชkษt /
verb
noun
Boycott
2
British
/ หbษษชkษt /
noun
boycott
Cultural
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
boycottsimple
-
boycottssimple
-
have boycottedperfect
-
has boycottedperfect
-
am boycottingprogressive
-
are boycottingprogressive
-
is boycottingprogressive
-
have been boycottingperfect progressive
-
has been boycottingperfect progressive
Past
-
boycottedsimple
-
had boycottedperfect
-
was boycottingprogressive
-
were boycottingprogressive
-
had been boycottingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of boycott
After Charles C. Boycott (1832โ97), English estate manager in Ireland, against whom nonviolent coercive tactics were used in 1880
Explanation
To boycott means to stop buying or using the goods or services of a certain company or country as a protest; the noun boycott is the protest itself. This noun comes from the name of Charles C. Boycott, an English land agent in 19th-century Ireland who refused to reduce rents for his tenant farmers. As a result, the local residents did not want to have any dealings with him. Boycotts are an effective way to use your spending dollars to effect change.
Vocabulary lists containing boycott
St. Patrick's Day Vocabulary: Words With Irish and Gaelic Roots
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List 3
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "B"
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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.
See Examples For:
The Netherlands will return to the Eurovision Song Contest next year despite a boycott by the broadcaster that was previously in charge of the country's participation.
From BBC โ Sep. 23, 2026
Educator Kendall C. Peacock posted a video on Instagram asking followers whether a boycott of the brand was warranted.
From Los Angeles Times โ Sep. 19, 2026
Infantino's plan sparked a global outcry, with European football's governing body Uefa threatening to boycott all Fifa competitions.
From BBC โ Sep. 10, 2026
It’s also a risk-averse one, in which publishers worry about taking on any project that might face a boycott or predictable headwinds.
From The Wall Street Journal โ Sep. 10, 2026
The bus boycott was a way of expressing anger at the system at last.
From "Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice" by Phillip Hoose
“Protesters gathered outside the event to raise awareness about the Boycott ‘Scream 7’ campaign and urge audiences to refrain from supporting the film.”
From Los Angeles Times โ Feb. 26, 2026
According to Belafonte, they arranged a meeting in the basement of Abyssinian Baptist Church, where King told him he was almost out of money to fund the Montgomery Bus Boycott and asked for help.
From The Wall Street Journal โ Jan. 31, 2026
"But it doesn't help our chances of success if Ben Stokes keeps encouraging our batsmen to attack, attack with one finger hovering over the self-destruct button," Boycott wrote in his Daily Telegraph column.
From Barron's โ Dec. 1, 2025
As a young man, he played for Barnsley Cricket Club alongside Boycott and the journalist and broadcaster Sir Michael Parkinson.
From BBC โ Oct. 19, 2025
It stood at the end of Dexter Avenue in Montgomery, across the street from the historic Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had pastored during the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson
Since the controversy blew up earlier this week, ticket prices, external for his remaining shows in the US, Mexico and South America have dropped, as calls for boycotts spread.
From BBC โ Sep. 18, 2026
“Boycotts can beget other boycotts, so there could be global risk to sales of U.S. business jets depending on how sentiment and behaviors change,” Capital Alpha said.
From MarketWatch โ Sep. 8, 2026
The continued boycotts add to a pile of issues the struggling industry faces.
From Los Angeles Times โ Aug. 26, 2026
Its February letter cites reports that other boycotts have wiped billions of dollars from Target’s market value.
From The Wall Street Journal โ Aug. 19, 2026
In the sixties and seventies, during the social upheaval of freedom rides and cafeteria sit-ins and boycotts in Birmingham and marches on Selma, Odessa stood locked in time.
From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger
Critics say the dialogue -- which excluded armed groups and was boycotted by key opposition parties -- did little to address these challenges.
From Barron's โ Aug. 31, 2026
Ordinary Canadians have even boycotted U.S. products and avoided taking vacations here in solidarity.
From Slate โ Aug. 25, 2026
Bakley’s family boycotted it as a staged PR event.
From Los Angeles Times โ Jul. 30, 2026
Fans and commentators who have previously boycotted the EWC have urged others to continue doing so this year, despite the change of venue.
From BBC โ Jul. 8, 2026
Perhaps he had boycotted cologne because the makers of cologne did not treat their employees well.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Local elections are under way, which protesters are boycotting.
From BBC โ Aug. 5, 2026
The public broadcasters of five countries - Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland and Slovenia - are boycotting this year's event, making it the smallest since 2003.
From BBC โ May 13, 2026
In Dallas, Carrie Hanna was hurt to discover that friends she thought were boycotting the camp are, in fact, sending their daughters this summer.
From The Wall Street Journal โ Apr. 18, 2026
Rep. Veronica Escobar is boycotting the main event in favor of the People’s State of the Union.
From Slate โ Feb. 24, 2026
Gran ended up boycotting the ash scattering, and if she wasn’t going, there was no reason for the rest of us to.
From "If I Stay" by Gayle Forman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, ยฉ Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritageยฎ Idioms Dictionary copyright ยฉ 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
