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bugaboo

[ buhg-uh-boo ]
/ ˈbʌg əˌbu /
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noun, plural bug·a·boos.
something that causes fear or worry; bugbear; bogy.
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Origin of bugaboo

1730–40; earlier buggybow.See bogy1, boo1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use bugaboo in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for bugaboo

bugaboo
/ (ˈbʌɡəˌbuː) /

noun plural -boos
an imaginary source of fear; bugbear; bogey

Word Origin for bugaboo

C18: probably of Celtic origin; compare Cornish buccaboo the devil
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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