: a monstrous imaginary figure used in threatening children
2
: a terrifying or dreaded person or thing : bugbear
Example Sentences
My aunt used to say to my sister and me, “The bogeyman will get you if you're bad.” a politician who is the familiar bogeyman of conservatives
Recent Examples on the WebFor some people, Leatherface is their ultimate bogeyman. Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Feb. 2022 Satanism might have been a bogeyman of the eighties, but Sparks’s other subjects cannot be similarly dismissed. Casey Cep, The New Yorker, 25 July 2022 In a recent conversation with THR, Yarkin also discusses her worst fears including her childhood bogeyman. Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Feb. 2022 Soros has been somewhat of a bogeyman for the Republican Party. Bill Bowden, Arkansas Online, 30 Apr. 2022 At night, the cabin is illuminated by red ambient lighting for a vibe that's either sporty or spooky, likely depending on whether or not passengers still believe in the bogeyman or not. Eric Stafford, Car and Driver, 10 May 2022 His attempt to use Russian President Vladimir Putin as an inflationary bogeyman for shocking oil markets is falling flat. The Week Staff, The Week, 26 Mar. 2022 Conservative leaders depicted the idea as a democracy-killing bogeyman. Leslie Gornstein, CBS News, 1 Apr. 2021 Scott seems almost wistful now to recall the Nineties, when the bogeyman in America was crack cocaine. Paul Solotaroff, Rolling Stone, 30 Jan. 2022 See More