bully

CEFRC1

/ˈbʊli/

noun · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A person who hurts or frightens weaker people.

  2. 02

    verb

    To threaten or hurt someone weaker.

Examples

  • Tom was warned not to bully Mary again.

  • Go and beat up that bully.

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
5
Synonyms
5

Also pronounced

  • /-li/
  • /-lɪ/

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. A hired thug.

  2. A noisy, blustering, tyrannical person, more insolent than courageous; one who is threatening and quarrelsome.

  3. A person who is intentionally physically or emotionally cruel to others, especially to those whom they perceive as being vulnerable or of less power or privilege.

More examples

In context

  • He used to bully his friends.

  • A playground bully pushed a girl off the swing.

  • I noticed you being a bully towards people with disabilities.

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The older student would often blank the younger kids on the playground.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

From 1530, as a term of endearment, probably a diminutive ( + -y) of Dutch boel (“lover; brother”), from Middle Dutch boel, boele (“brother; lover”), from Old Dutch *buolo, from Proto-Germanic *bōlô (compare Middle Low German bôle (“brother”), Middle High German buole (“brother; close relative; close relation”) (whence German Buhle (“lover”)), Old English Bōla, Bōlla (personal name), diminutive of expressive *bō- (“brother, father”). Compare also Latvian bālinš (“brother”). More at boy. The term acquired a negative connotation during the 17th century; first ‘noisy, blustering fellow’ then ‘a person who is cruel to others’. Possibly influenced by bull (“male cattle”) or via the ‘prostitute's...