boycott

[boi-kot]

verb (used with object)

1. to combine in abstaining from, or preventing dealings with, as a means of intimidation or coercion.

   to boycott a store.

2. to abstain from buying or using.

   to boycott foreign products.

noun

1. the practice of boycotting.

2. an instance of boycotting.

boycott

¹

/ ˈbɔɪkɒt /

verb

1. (tr) to refuse to have dealings with (a person, organization, etc) or refuse to buy (a product) as a protest or means of coercion

   to boycott foreign produce

noun

1. an instance or the use of boycotting

Boycott

²

/ ˈbɔɪkɒt /

noun

1. Geoff ( rey ). born 1940, English cricketer: played for Yorkshire (1962–86); played in 108 test matches (1964–1982); first England batsman to score 8,000 test runs

boycott

1. The refusal to purchase the products of an individual, corporation, or nation as a way to bring social and political pressure for change.

Other Word Forms

• boycotter noun
• antiboycott noun
• proboycott adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of boycott¹

After Charles C. Boycott (1832–97), English estate manager in Ireland, against whom nonviolent coercive tactics were used in 1880

Word History and Origins

Origin of boycott¹

C19: after Captain C. C. Boycott (1832–97), Irish land agent for the Earl of Erne, County Mayo, Ireland, who was a victim of such practices for refusing to reduce rents

Example Sentences

Marking 25 years of EU-African Union relations, the summit came on the heels of a G20 meeting in South Africa where a US boycott underscored geopolitical fractures.

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The seventh gathering of its kind, the two-day Angola summit comes on the heels of a G20 meeting in South Africa where a US boycott underscored geopolitical fractures.

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The buy-in’s objective was to temporarily stall the store’s operation and show the financial contribution that day laborers make to the company — without staging a boycott, which Andiola said the community does not want.

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Here are some highlights from the declaration from the first G20 summit on the African continent which was boycotted by the United States.

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A draft joint statement for a G20 summit in South Africa this weekend was finalised on Friday for the leaders, sources told AFP, after preparations boycotted by the United States.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• avoid 
• cut off 
• exclude 
• refuse 
• reject 
• snub 
• spurn