boycott
verb (used with object)
to combine in abstaining from, or preventing dealings with, as a means of intimidation or coercion.
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:
UEFA's threat to boycott World Cups if the private investment plan went ahead proved pivotal in Infantino withdrawing his sell-off plan.
From Barron's โ Aug. 11, 2026
European football's governing body says its threat to boycott Fifa events remains on the table, adding that assurances the FFE plan could not be revived have not been received.
From BBC โ Aug. 8, 2026
He faces opposition in particular from UEFA, which on Thursday stood by its threat to boycott the World Cups, deeming the mere withdrawal of the controversial plan to be insufficient.
From Barron's โ Aug. 8, 2026
Unless Uefa sticks by the nuclear option - and goes through with its threat of a boycott.
From BBC โ Aug. 6, 2026
King had gained national prominence during the Montgomery bus boycott a decade earlier.
From "Because They Marched" by Russell Freedman
They held signs that read “Protect our workers” and “Defend day labor centers! Boycott Home Depot.”
From Los Angeles Times โ Feb. 6, 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
Former England opener Boycott insisted Stokes's men could win at Brisbane's Gabba ground with a more measured approach.
From Barron's โ Dec. 1, 2025
Bird and Parkinson were opening batting partners, some years older than Boycott.
From BBC โ Sep. 23, 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
The former Wales international told BBC Radio Wales she hoped boycotts would not happen, adding: "I feel optimistic they won't, because the reality is the powerhouse of world football is Europe."
From BBC โ Jul. 30, 2026
Mr. Mengestu objected to the article’s restatement of PEN’s longstanding opposition to cultural and academic boycotts.
From The Wall Street Journal โ Jul. 14, 2026
Turner created the Goodwill Games in the 1980s as part of an effort to ease international tensions during the Cold War, amid Olympic boycotts led by the United States and Soviet Union.
From Barron's โ May 6, 2026
The Bezos’ involvement was met with boycotts and protests.
From Salon โ May 6, 2026
The mass action consisted of strikes, demonstrations, and boycotts.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Bakley’s family boycotted it as a staged PR event.
From Los Angeles Times โ Jul. 30, 2026
After Labour, the Conservatives and other major parties boycotted the vote, the most prominent competitor in the field is Count Binface.
From The Wall Street Journal โ Jul. 12, 2026
The Clacton contest is being boycotted by the other main Westminster parties, who view his actions a stunt, leaving comedy candidate Count Binface as the highest-profile opponent for the Reform UK leader.
From BBC โ Jul. 10, 2026
The US also boycotted the G20 meeting, a gathering of the world's major economies, hosted by South Africa last November.
From BBC โ Jun. 19, 2026
Chief Buthelezi also boycotted the talks on the grounds that he was not permitted three delegations: for Inkatha, the KwaZulu government, and King Zwelithini.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Niamh Worthington and Celine Flanagan, who were on a short trip from Manchester in Dublin, said the UK should also be boycotting the contest.
From BBC โ May 15, 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
Ukrainian athletes are boycotting the Paralympics opening ceremony, along with officials from Finland, Poland, Latvia, Estonia and Czechia.
From BBC โ Mar. 4, 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
In the United States, talk of boycotting the 1936 Olympics had been simmering since the Nazis had come to power in 1933.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
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.
