bogey

noun

variants also bogie or bogy
Definition of bogeynext
1
as in dread
something or someone that causes fear or dread especially without reason math and math tests have long been bogeys for many students

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in ghost
the soul of a dead person thought of especially as appearing to living people the child believed bogeys lived in the closet

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bogey Woodland’s round Sunday included three birdies, one bogey. — Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 22 June 2026 Yan birdied the par-5 18th to cap her second straight bogey-free round at Blythefield Country Club. — ABC News, 20 June 2026 As the final pair traded birdies and bogeys — and waited out a rain delay — Scheffler gained momentum and then capitalized with an eight-and-a-half-foot putt to send the tournament to a playoff. — Anna Lazarus Caplan, PEOPLE, 29 June 2026 The majority of fans on the Long Island, New York property appeared to be pulling against the Colorado native with countless shouts for his golf ball to find bunkers and minor roars after each of his five bogeys during the final round. — Mark Harris, FOXNews.com, 23 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for bogey
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bogey
  1. dread
  2. ghost
  3. terror
  4. apparition
  5. bugaboo
  6. spirit
  7. enemy
  8. phantom
Noun
  • Unlike the 1960 film, where Mizuno narrates his own tragedy, Yeon and Katayama’s new Vapor is an object of mystery and dread rather than the story’s protagonist.
    — Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 6 July 2026
  • Without a sense of dread and horror, From just becomes a kind of supernatural soap opera where everyone is angry at one another all the time.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 5 July 2026
Definition of dread
Noun
  • The same applies to the Lake of Tears, which seemed really important when Jim’s ghost showed up to tell Ethan to find it.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 5 July 2026
  • The English have to contend with not only the ghost of Maradona’s two goals, but also the altitude in Mexico City, which is about 7,350 feet above sea level.
    — Eduard Cauich, Los Angeles Times, 4 July 2026
Definition of ghost
Noun
  • Thibault in a news conference Tuesday said that authorities believe the incident was not related to terror.
    — Ivan Pereira, ABC News, 30 June 2026
  • Meanwhile, frightful aftershocks continued to rock the area, sowing terror in a population already reaching the limits of endurance.
    — Mery Mogollón, Los Angeles Times, 30 June 2026
Definition of terror
Noun
  • Reports of strange sounds, apparitions, and unexplained encounters continue to attract visitors.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 15 June 2026
  • Why then, when discussing body image after weight changes, is our culture reaching for the language of vexing apparitions and death?
    — Virgie Tovar, Forbes.com, 14 June 2026
Definition of apparition
Noun
  • This thing of like trying to paint a certain type or color or class of people as the enemy and the great bugaboo in America?
    — Jim Ryan, Forbes.com, 25 June 2026
  • If there’s any big bugaboo in his profile, he can be beaten by higher-end velocity, but his ability to adjust to secondary offerings keeps him afloat.
    — Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 10 June 2026
Definition of bugaboo
Noun
  • If American music in 1976 represented a collective, inquisitive, inventive American spirit of discovery, the semiquincentennial in the age of social media has become more about the individual identity.
    — Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2026
  • The spirit of a '90s summer vacation is alive and well in tropics-print caftans like this fresh-off-the-runway one from SHAN's SS27 Collection.
    — Katherine J Igoe, InStyle, 2 July 2026
Definition of spirit
Noun
  • His death in an enemy attack plays into a powerful Shi'ite tradition of martyrdom and mourning, in which processions of flagellants beat their chests or backs.
    — Parisa Hafezi, USA Today, 3 July 2026
  • The day for battle is near, many of our enemies are arming themselves.
    — Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 3 July 2026
Definition of enemy
Noun
  • That’s the £312 million phantom.
    — Maman Ibrahim, Forbes.com, 20 May 2026
  • Such a designation, evidently, would save agents from wasting time chasing phantoms.
    — Adam Ciralsky, Vanity Fair, 19 Mar. 2026
Definition of phantom

Browse Nearby Words

bog (down)
bogey
bogeyman
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bogey.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bogey. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on bogey

Nglish: Translation of bogey for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about bogey

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