bogeyman

Language

See also: bogey man

English

English Wikipedia has an article on:

bogeyman

Alternative forms

bogieman, bogyman, boogieman, boogeyman, boogyman, buggerman

Etymology

From bogey +‎ -manCategory:English terms suffixed with -man#BOGEYMAN.

Pronunciation

(UK) IPA^(key): /ˈbəʊ.ɡɪˌmæn/, /ˈbəʊ.ɡiˌmæn/Category:English 3-syllable words#BOGEYMAN Category:English 3-syllable words#BOGEYMAN Category:English terms with IPA pronunciation#BOGEYMAN
Audio (Southern England): (file)
Category:English terms with audio pronunciation#BOGEYMAN
(US) IPA^(key): /ˈboʊ.ɡiˌmæn/, /ˈbʊɡ.iˌmæn/, /ˈbu.ɡiˌmæn/Category:English 3-syllable words#BOGEYMAN Category:English 3-syllable words#BOGEYMAN Category:English 3-syllable words#BOGEYMAN Category:English terms with IPA pronunciation#BOGEYMAN
(Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈbu.ɡiˌmæn/Category:English 3-syllable words#BOGEYMAN Category:English terms with IPA pronunciation#BOGEYMAN

Noun

bogeyman (plural bogeymen)Category:English lemmas#BOGEYMAN Category:English nouns#BOGEYMAN Category:English countable nouns#BOGEYMAN Category:English nouns with irregular plurals#BOGEYMAN Category:English entries with incorrect language header#BOGEYMAN Category:Pages with entries#BOGEYMAN Category:Pages with 1 entry#BOGEYMAN

A menacing, ghost-like monster in children's stories.
Synonyms: bogey, bug-a-boo, bugaboo, bugbear

Coordinate terms: goblin; see also Thesaurus:ghost

Near-synonyms: bogeyperson, bogeywoman
- 2003, “Pet”, performed by A Perfect Circle:
  Lay your head down child
  I won't let the boogeyman come
  Counting bodies like sheep
  To the rhythm of the war drums
  Pay no mind to the rabble
  Pay no mind to the rabble
  Head down, go to sleep
  To the rhythm of the war drums
  Category:English terms with quotations#BOGEYMAN
(figuratively, by extension) Any make-believe threat, especially one used to intimidate or distract; a real threat greatly exaggerated for those purposes.
Near-synonyms: bug-a-boo, bugaboo, chimera

The bogeyman of a Halloween-candy poisoner behind every door has animated occasional moral panics against trick-or-treating.Category:English terms with usage examples#BOGEYMAN
- 2009 November 11, Anthony Tarricone, “Blaming lawyers a bogeyman to stop health reform”, in CNN‎, archived from the original on 10 May 2013:
  With no original ideas or solutions, they've now resorted to bringing out a tried-and-tested bogeymen in a last-ditch attempt to derail much-needed legislation.
  Category:English terms with quotations#BOGEYMAN
- 2013, Frances Booth, The Distraction Trap:
  Before the Internet it was television. And, if not that, it was radio, films, or games. All have taken their turn as the popular bogeyman, blighting the minds of the young.
  Category:English terms with quotations#BOGEYMAN
- 2020 November 18, Brian Lowry, “‘Soros’ looks at the life and activism of the right’s favorite bogeyman”, in CNN‎, archived from the original on 5 March 2026:
  If there’s a down side to the film, it’s that “Soros” probably doesn’t devote enough time to the way its subject has become a favorite bogeyman to conservatives that paint him as the guiding hand behind grassroots campaigns by those intent on discrediting them.
  Category:English terms with quotations#BOGEYMAN

Translations

menacing, ghost-like monster in children's stories

Category:Entries with translation boxes#BOGEYMAN

Albanian: gogol (sq) mCategory:Terms with Albanian translations#BOGEYMAN
Arabic: بُعْبُع m (buʕbuʕ)Category:Terms with Arabic translations#BOGEYMAN
Moroccan Arabic: بوعو m (būʕʕu)Category:Terms with Moroccan Arabic translations#BOGEYMAN, بو خنشة m (bū ḵanša)Category:Terms with Moroccan Arabic translations#BOGEYMAN
Basque: hamalau-zakuCategory:Terms with Basque translations#BOGEYMAN
Catalan: home del sac mCategory:Terms with Catalan translations#BOGEYMAN, papu (ca) mCategory:Terms with Catalan translations#BOGEYMAN
Chinese:
Mandarin: 怪物 (zh) (guàiwù)Category:Terms with Mandarin translations#BOGEYMAN, 魔鬼 (zh) (móguǐ)Category:Mandarin terms with redundant transliterations#BOGEYMAN Category:Terms with Mandarin translations#BOGEYMAN
Czech: bubák (cs) mCategory:Terms with Czech translations#BOGEYMAN, strašák (cs) mCategory:Terms with Czech translations#BOGEYMAN, strašidlo (cs) nCategory:Terms with Czech translations#BOGEYMAN
Danish: bussemand (da) cCategory:Terms with Danish translations#BOGEYMAN, bøhmand cCategory:Terms with Danish translations#BOGEYMAN
Dutch: boeman (nl) mCategory:Terms with Dutch translations#BOGEYMAN, bietebauw (nl) mCategory:Terms with Dutch translations#BOGEYMAN
Esperanto: infantimiguloCategory:Terms with Esperanto translations#BOGEYMAN
Estonian: koll (et)Category:Terms with Estonian translations#BOGEYMAN
Finnish: mörkö (fi)Category:Terms with Finnish translations#BOGEYMAN
French: croque-mitaine (fr) mCategory:Terms with French translations#BOGEYMAN
Galician: sacaúntos mCategory:Terms with Galician translations#BOGEYMAN, coco (gl) mCategory:Terms with Galician translations#BOGEYMAN, sacamanteigas mCategory:Terms with Galician translations#BOGEYMAN, papón (gl) mCategory:Terms with Galician translations#BOGEYMAN
German: Butzemann (de) mCategory:Terms with German translations#BOGEYMAN
Greek: μπαμπούλας (el) m (bampoúlas)Category:Terms with Greek translations#BOGEYMAN
Ancient Greek: μορμολυκεῖον n (mormolukeîon)Category:Terms with Ancient Greek translations#BOGEYMAN
Hungarian: krampusz (hu)Category:Terms with Hungarian translations#BOGEYMAN, mumus (hu)Category:Terms with Hungarian translations#BOGEYMAN
Italian: uomo neroCategory:Terms with Italian translations#BOGEYMAN, babau (it)Category:Terms with Italian translations#BOGEYMAN
Japanese: ブギーマン (ja) (bugīman)Category:Terms with Japanese translations#BOGEYMAN, 小鬼 (ja) (こおに, ko-oni)Category:Terms with Japanese translations#BOGEYMAN
Korean: 꼬마 도깨비 (kkoma dokkaebi)Category:Terms with Korean translations#BOGEYMAN, 부기맨 (bugimaen)Category:Terms with Korean translations#BOGEYMAN
Ladino: bambarutoCategory:Terms with Ladino translations#BOGEYMAN
Latgalian: bubaCategory:Terms with Latgalian translations#BOGEYMAN
Latin: larva fCategory:Terms with Latin translations#BOGEYMAN
Latvian: bubulisCategory:Terms with Latvian translations#BOGEYMAN
Lithuanian: baubasCategory:Terms with Lithuanian translations#BOGEYMAN, bubulisCategory:Terms with Lithuanian translations#BOGEYMAN
Macedonian: Баба Рога f (Baba Roga)Category:Terms with Macedonian translations#BOGEYMAN
Norman: croque-mitaine mCategory:Terms with Norman translations#BOGEYMAN, barbou mCategory:Terms with Norman translations#BOGEYMAN
Norwegian: busemann mCategory:Terms with Norwegian translations#BOGEYMAN
Persian: لولو (fa) sg (lūlū)Category:Terms with Persian translations#BOGEYMAN
Polish: czarny lud mCategory:Terms with Polish translations#BOGEYMAN
Portuguese: bicho-papão mCategory:Terms with Portuguese translations#BOGEYMAN, homem do saco mCategory:Terms with Portuguese translations#BOGEYMAN, papa-figos (pt) mCategory:Terms with Portuguese translations#BOGEYMAN
Romanian: baubau (ro) mCategory:Terms with Romanian translations#BOGEYMAN, omul negru mCategory:Terms with Romanian translations#BOGEYMAN, gogoriță (ro)Category:Terms with Romanian translations#BOGEYMAN
Russian: бу́ка (ru) f (búka)Category:Terms with Russian translations#BOGEYMAN, баба́й (ru) m (babáj)Category:Terms with Russian translations#BOGEYMAN, страши́лище (ru) n (strašílišče)Category:Terms with Russian translations#BOGEYMAN, домово́й (ru) m (domovój)Category:Terms with Russian translations#BOGEYMAN (in Slavic mythology), бу́гимен m (búgimɛn)Category:Russian terms with non-redundant manual transliterations#BOGEYMAN Category:Terms with Russian translations#BOGEYMAN
Serbo-Croatian: babaroga (sh) fCategory:Terms with Serbo-Croatian translations#BOGEYMAN, бабарога fCategory:Terms with Serbo-Croatian translations#BOGEYMAN
Spanish: coco (es)Category:Terms with Spanish translations#BOGEYMAN, cuco (es) mCategory:Terms with Spanish translations#BOGEYMAN, cucuy mCategory:Terms with Spanish translations#BOGEYMAN, sacamantecas mCategory:Terms with Spanish translations#BOGEYMAN, hombre del saco (es) mCategory:Terms with Spanish translations#BOGEYMAN (Latin America)
Tagalog: mumòCategory:Terms with Tagalog translations#BOGEYMAN, mumuCategory:Terms with Tagalog translations#BOGEYMAN (childish)
Tajik: буҷӣ (buji)Category:Terms with Tajik translations#BOGEYMAN
Tamil: பூச்சாண்டி (ta) (pūccāṇṭi)Category:Terms with Tamil translations#BOGEYMAN
Turkish: gulyabani (tr)Category:Terms with Turkish translations#BOGEYMAN, hortlak (tr)Category:Terms with Turkish translations#BOGEYMAN, öcü (tr)Category:Terms with Turkish translations#BOGEYMAN, karakoncolos (tr)Category:Terms with Turkish translations#BOGEYMAN, umacı (tr)Category:Terms with Turkish translations#BOGEYMAN
Vietnamese: ngoáo ộp (vi)Category:Terms with Vietnamese translations#BOGEYMAN, ông ba bịCategory:Terms with Vietnamese translations#BOGEYMAN

any make-believe threat

Category:Entries with translation boxes#BOGEYMAN

Danish: bussemand (da) cCategory:Terms with Danish translations#BOGEYMAN, bøhmand cCategory:Terms with Danish translations#BOGEYMAN
Finnish: mörkö (fi)Category:Terms with Finnish translations#BOGEYMAN
German: Schreckgespenst (de) nCategory:Terms with German translations#BOGEYMAN
Italian: spauracchio (it) mCategory:Terms with Italian translations#BOGEYMAN
Macedonian: Баба Рога f (Baba Roga)Category:Terms with Macedonian translations#BOGEYMAN
Polish: czarny lud mCategory:Terms with Polish translations#BOGEYMAN, straszydło (pl) nCategory:Terms with Polish translations#BOGEYMAN
Russian: пу́гало (ru) n (púgalo)Category:Terms with Russian translations#BOGEYMAN, жу́пел (ru) m (žúpel)Category:Terms with Russian translations#BOGEYMAN
Turkish: öcü (tr)Category:Terms with Turkish translations#BOGEYMAN, korkutkuCategory:Terms with Turkish translations#BOGEYMAN, canavar (tr)Category:Terms with Turkish translations#BOGEYMAN

Anagrams

money bag, moneybag

Category:en:Characters from folklore#BOGEYMAN Category:en:Fear#BOGEYMAN Category:en:Mythological creatures#BOGEYMAN

Category:English 3-syllable words Category:English countable nouns Category:English lemmas Category:English nouns Category:English nouns with irregular plurals Category:English terms suffixed with -man Category:English terms with IPA pronunciation Category:English terms with audio pronunciation Category:English terms with quotations Category:English terms with usage examples Category:Entries with translation boxes Category:Mandarin terms with redundant transliterations Category:Pages with 1 entry Category:Pages with entries Category:Russian terms with non-redundant manual transliterations Category:Terms with Albanian translations Category:Terms with Ancient Greek translations Category:Terms with Arabic translations Category:Terms with Basque translations Category:Terms with Catalan translations Category:Terms with Czech translations Category:Terms with Danish translations Category:Terms with Dutch translations Category:Terms with Esperanto translations Category:Terms with Estonian translations Category:Terms with Finnish translations Category:Terms with French translations Category:Terms with Galician translations Category:Terms with German translations Category:Terms with Greek translations Category:Terms with Hungarian translations Category:Terms with Italian translations Category:Terms with Japanese translations Category:Terms with Korean translations Category:Terms with Ladino translations Category:Terms with Latgalian translations Category:Terms with Latin translations Category:Terms with Latvian translations Category:Terms with Lithuanian translations Category:Terms with Macedonian translations Category:Terms with Mandarin translations Category:Terms with Moroccan Arabic translations Category:Terms with Norman translations Category:Terms with Norwegian translations Category:Terms with Persian translations Category:Terms with Polish translations Category:Terms with Portuguese translations Category:Terms with Romanian translations Category:Terms with Russian translations Category:Terms with Serbo-Croatian translations Category:Terms with Spanish translations Category:Terms with Tagalog translations Category:Terms with Tajik translations Category:Terms with Tamil translations Category:Terms with Turkish translations Category:Terms with Vietnamese translations Category:en:Characters from folklore Category:en:Fear Category:en:Mythological creatures