4 VERB If you boot something such as a ball, you kick it hard. [INFORMAL ] □ [V n adv/prep] He booted the ball 40 yards back up field.
5 N‑COUNT The boot of a car is a covered space at the back or front, in which you carry things such as luggage and shopping. [BRIT ] □ He opened the boot to put my bags in. in AM, use trunk
6 PHRASE If you get the boot or are given the boot , you are told that you are not wanted any more, either in your job or by someone you are having a relationship with. [INFORMAL ] □ She was a disruptive influence, and after a year or two she got the boot.
7 PHRASE If someone puts the boot in , they attack another person by saying something cruel, often when the person is already feeling weak or upset. [BRIT , INFORMAL ]
8 PHRASE You can say to boot to emphasize that you have added something else to something or to a list of things that you have just said. [FORMAL , EMPHASIS ] □ He is making money and receiving free advertising to boot!
▸ boot out PHRASAL VERB If someone boots you out of a job, organization, or place, you are forced to leave it. [INFORMAL ] □ [V P n] Schools are booting out record numbers of unruly pupils. [Also V n P ]
▸ boot up PHRASAL VERB When you boot up a computer, you make it ready to use by putting in the instructions which it needs in order to start working. [COMPUTING ] □ [V P + from/with ] I can boot up from the CD. □ [V n P ] Go over to your PC and boot it up.
boo t camp (boot camps )
1 N‑VAR In the United States, a boot camp is a camp where people who have just joined the army, navy, or marines are trained. [AM ]
2 N‑VAR A boot camp is a set of intensive exercises done on a regular basis and designed to improve strength and fitness. [AM ]
bootee /buː tiː / (bootees or booties )
1 N‑COUNT [usu pl] Bootees are short woollen socks that babies wear instead of shoes.
2 N‑COUNT Bootees are short boots which come to just above the ankle. They are worn especially by women and girls.
booth /buː ð/ (booths )
1 N‑COUNT [usu n N ] A booth is a small area separated from a larger public area by screens or thin walls where, for example, people can make a phone call or vote in private. □ I called her from a public phone booth near the entrance to the bar. □ In Darlington, queues formed at some polling booths.
2 N‑COUNT A booth in a restaurant or café consists of a table with long fixed seats on two or sometimes three sides of it. □ They sat in a corner booth, away from other diners.
boot|lace /buː tle I s/ (bootlaces ) N‑COUNT [usu pl] A bootlace is a long thin cord which is used to fasten a boot.
boot|leg /buː tleg/ (bootlegs , bootlegging , bootlegged )
1 ADJ [ADJ n] Bootleg is used to describe something that is made secretly and sold illegally. □ …a bootleg recording of the band's tour of Scandinavia. □ …bootleg liquor.
2 VERB To bootleg something such as a recording means to make and sell it illegally. □ [V n] He has sued a fan for bootlegging his concerts. □ [V -ed] Avid Bob Dylan fans treasure bootlegged recordings. ● N‑COUNT Bootleg is also a noun. □ The record was a bootleg. ● boot|leg|ger (bootleggers ) N‑COUNT □ Bootleggers sold 75 million dollars-worth of copies.
boot|strap /buː tstræp/ (bootstraps , bootstrapping , bootstrapped )
1 VERB If you bootstrap an organization or an activity, you set it up or achieve it alone, using very few resources. □ Peterson bootstrapped the company himself, and hopes to continue without outside funding.
2 VERB If one thing is bootstrapped to another, it is attached to or associated with it. □ This command ensures that the software is bootstrapped to the correct system.
3 PHRASE If you have pulled yourself up by your bootstraps , you have achieved success by your own efforts, starting from very difficult circumstances and without help from anyone.
boo|ty /buː ti/
1 N‑UNCOUNT Booty is a collection of valuable things stolen from a place, especially by soldiers after a battle. □ Troops destroyed the capital and confiscated many works of art as war booty.
2 N‑COUNT [oft poss N ] Someone's booty is their bottom. [INFORMAL , RUDE ]
booze /buː z/ (boozes , boozing , boozed )
1 N‑UNCOUNT [oft the N ] Booze is alcoholic drink. [INFORMAL ] □ …booze and cigarettes. □ …empty bottles of booze.
2 VERB If people booze , they drink alcohol. [INFORMAL ] □ [V ] …a load of drunken businessmen who had been boozing all afternoon. ● booz|ing N‑UNCOUNT □ He used to be famous for his boozing.
boozed /buː zd/ ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] If someone is boozed or boozed up , they are drunk. [INFORMAL ] □ He's half asleep and a bit boozed.
booz|er /buː zə r / (boozers )
1 N‑COUNT A boozer is a pub . [BRIT , INFORMAL ] □ They're in the boozer most nights.
2 N‑COUNT A boozer is a person who drinks a lot of alcohol. [INFORMAL ] □ I thought he was a bit of a boozer.
boo ze-up (booze-ups ) N‑COUNT In Britain, a booze-up is a party or other social gathering where people drink a lot of alcohol. [INFORMAL ] □ …a booze-up at the rugby club.