Boys will be boys
Children can be expected to act in a childish way.
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Boys will be boys
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boys will be boys
boys will be boysOne can expect boys to act childishly or misbehave, as in We told the kids not to eat in the living room, but when we got home there was a big mess there—oh well, boys will be boys. This term came from a Latin proverb, translated as “Children [boys] are children [boys] and do childish things.” In English it was first recorded in 1589.
Boys will be boys
Cultural
boys will be boys
Idioms
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“Boys will be boys” is often applied to grown men who act childishly.
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.
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“How powerful is that? How profound is that? Boys will be boys, and there is nothing wrong with that.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 29, 2026
Boys will be boys, even ones that tear out of bodies, a lot more developed than newborns and with uncanny, adult-sized heads.
From Salon ● Aug. 28, 2022
Boys will be boys, however fast their toys.
From The New Yorker ● Nov. 8, 2019
Mere “trolling,” he said, as if to suggest: Boys will be boys.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 16, 2018
"Boys will be boys, and they are very prone to look at the ludicrous aspect of an accident," added the stout professor.
From Dikes and Ditches Young America in Holland and Belguim by Oliver Optic
Yes, boys will be boys, even if they are grown men.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026
"It's due to the normalisation of these situations, the attitude that boys will be boys and it's something women should put up with," added Rhiannon, who is from Llanelli.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2025
We accept, over and over, that boys will be boys and you have to break a few eggs, etc.
From Slate ● Aug. 23, 2021
There’s room to push back on the age-old adage boys will be boys, and in exploring female anger, it allows teenage girls to truly be girls, too.
From Salon ● Oct. 13, 2019
Very likely some Mrs. Grundy will observe, “I don’t believe it, boys will be boys, young men must sow their wild oats, and women must not expect miracles.”
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
