boy Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a youthful male person
    male child.
    • the baby was a boy
    • she made the boy brush his teeth every night
    • most soldiers are only boys in uniform
  2. noun a friendly informal reference to a grown man
    • he likes to play golf with the boys
  3. noun a male human offspring
    son.
    • their son became a famous judge
    • his boy is taller than he is
  4. noun (ethnic slur) offensive and disparaging term for Black man
    • get out of my way, boy

WordNet

Boy noun
Etymology
Cf. D. boef, Fries. boi, boy; akin to G. bube, Icel. bofi rouge.
Definitions
  1. A male child, from birth to the age of puberty; a lad; hence, a son.
    My only boy fell by the side of great Dundee. Sir W. Scott.
    ✍ Boy is often used as a term of comradeship, as in college, or in the army or navy. In the plural used colloquially of members of an assosiaton, fraternity, or party.
Boy transitive verb
Definitions
  1. To act as a boy; -- in allusion to the former practice of boys acting women's parts on the stage.
    I shall see Some squeaking Cleopatra boy my greatness. Shak.

Webster 1913