boot

SayBOOT/but/UK/buːt//bʉːt/

Pluralboots

Verbboots, booting, booted

39 meanings of boot

Practice

1
heavy shoenouncountable
A sturdy shoe that covers the foot and ankle and often part of the leg; also, a studded sports shoe for games like soccer.
Hikers wore heavy leather boots for the rocky trail.
Each boot was laced tightly against the cold.
UsageUsually a pair of boots; you pull on or lace up your boots.
Note
The physical sense most of the others grow from. Height usually separates a boot from a shoe, because it climbs past the ankle. Several later senses borrow its shape or its wearer: a molded protective cover, a rifle case, the foot soldier, the kick.
2
start (computer)verb
To start up a computer or other system by triggering its built-in startup sequence.
Engineers had to boot the server twice before it responded.
She watched the terminal boot from an external drive.
UsageOften boot up: you boot up a computer, or it boots up. The opposite is shut down.
Similarstart (entry), bootstrap
Oppositestop
3
startup processnoun
The starting or restarting of a computing device by running its startup process.
A cold boot clears the memory completely before the system loads again.
Each boot of the workstation triggered a full hardware check.
Note
A clipping of bootstrap, which pictures a machine lifting itself into operation by running a small program that loads the rest. As a noun it is countable, so a frustrated user can need three boots to finish an install. It is most at home in compounds such as cold boot and warm boot.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts
The computing word boot is a clipping of bootstrap. en.wiktionary.org
Bootstrap evokes self-starting through a small program that loads further software. en.wikipedia.org
4
car trunknounAustraliaBritishNew ZealandSouth Africacountable
The enclosed storage compartment of a car for luggage and other items, usually at the rear.
He loaded the spare tyre into the boot before the long drive.
They locked the suitcases in the boot overnight.
UsageThings go in the boot; American drivers say trunk.
Similartrunk
Note
The car inherited it from the baggage compartment of the stagecoach, so luggage rode in the boot long before engines did. The lid has its own compound, boot lid, which sits naturally beside bonnet and doors: Keith Bluemel's restorer's guide to Ferrari V-12s lists all three together.
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts
The car-compartment sense derives from a storage compartment on a horse-drawn coach. en.wikipedia.org
Stagecoaches carried baggage in a compartment called a boot before motorcars. gutenberg.org
5
remove someoneverbcolloquialtransitive
To force someone to leave a place, position, group, or online game or conversation.
Security booted the rowdy fans before halftime.
The committee voted to boot the member who broke the rules.
UsageUsually boot someone from or out of something, often passive: was booted from the team.
Similarexpel, eject, oust, remove, dismiss
Oppositeadmit
6
dismissalnouncolloquialwith the
The act of dismissing or firing someone from a job or other position.
After the scandal, the director finally got the boot.
Rumors spread that half the department would get the boot.
UsageUsually get the boot or give someone the boot.
Similarsack, axe, push, chop
7
kick (something)verbtransitive
To strike or propel something with a forceful kick of the foot.
The goalkeeper booted the ball deep into the opposing half.
Frustrated, he would boot any loose stone in his path.
UsageOften with a direction: boot the ball upfield, boot it clear.
Similarkick, punt
8
a kicknoununcountable
A forceful blow struck with the foot.
A swift boot sent the gate swinging open.
He aimed a frustrated boot at the broken vending machine.
UsageUsually give something a good boot or aim a boot at something.
Similarkick
9
soldiernounUScountable
A member of the armed forces, especially a foot soldier who fights on the ground rather than in vehicles or aircraft.
The general warned that without more boots on the ground, the border could not be held.
Air strikes helped, but it was the boots on the ground who finally took the hill.
UsageMostly in boots on the ground, meaning troops actually present in a place.
Similarsoldier, infantryman, trooper, grunt
10
rubber covernouncountable
A flexible rubber or plastic cover, often molded to shape, that shields a shaft, lever, switch, or opening from dust, moisture, and dirt.
Grease leaked out once the steering boot split.
Each gear lever has a boot to keep grit out of the housing.
Similargaiter
Note
Mechanics and builders name it by what it guards: a steering boot, a gear-lever boot, a switch boot. Its job is to keep grit and moisture out while the part underneath keeps moving, so it has to be flexible. That flexibility sets it apart from the rifle case, which is rigid. A split steering or axle boot often announces itself by leaking grease.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts
Protective boots keep dirt and moisture out of mechanical components. en.wikipedia.org
These covers are flexible so that the protected components can move. safran-group.com
Gun boots can incorporate flexible fabric holsters; rigidity is not a defining distinction. patents.google.com
11
new recruitnounslangUScountable
A recently arrived recruit; a newcomer still in training, especially in the military or police.
Every boot reports to the training yard at dawn.
The veterans teased the new boots about their clumsy salutes.
Similarrecruit, rookie, trainee, newbie
Oppositeveteran
Note
American military and police slang for the greenest person in the unit, the same boot found in boot camp. It is a put-down as often as a label: 'you complete and utter boot' marks someone as untested. Keep it apart from the plural for troops, which counts soldiers without belittling them.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts
The derivation runs the other way: boot camp derives from boot meaning a new recruit, plus camp. en.wiktionary.org
The quoted wording occurs as an insult using boot. en.wiktionary.org

Less common meanings

12
wheel clampnounUScountable
A clamping device fixed to a car's wheel to immobilize it until the vehicle is towed or a fine is paid.
Parking enforcement attached a boot to the illegally parked truck.
He had to pay the fine before crews removed the boot.
UsageOfficers put a boot on a car; wheel clamp names the same device.
Similarclamp
Note
American parking enforcement's answer to the unpaid fine. The device locks onto one wheel, and the car goes nowhere until the debt is settled or the tow truck arrives.
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts
American parking authorities use wheel boots to enforce payment of outstanding parking fines. arlingtonva.us
The device attaches to one wheel and immobilizes the car pending payment or towing. portal.311.nyc.gov
13
harsh controlnounfigurativelywith the
Oppression or harsh domination; also the person or power that imposes it.
For a generation they suffered under the boot of the regime.
Every uprising aimed to break the boot that ground down the poor.
UsageUsually under the boot of someone: under the boot of the regime.
Similaryoke, heel, oppression, tyranny
Note
An image of power pressing down from above, almost always used with the: a nation 'struggling to get free of the British boot', or Ireland 'long under the British boot'. Gilles Perrault's Paris Under the Occupation (English edition, 1989) uses it this way, describing one section of Paris prospering 'under the boot of an invader'.
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 4 facts
The wording about a nation struggling free of the British boot is attested. en.wiktionary.org
The wording about Ireland long under the British boot is attested. en.wiktionary.org
Gilles Perrault wrote Paris Under the Occupation. openlibrary.org
The book describes part of Paris prospering under the boot of an invader, using the quoted wording. en.wiktionary.org
14
drive fastverbcolloquialCanadaUStransitive
To press down hard on the accelerator for quicker acceleration or to drive faster than usual.
She booted it out of the parking lot before the storm hit.
When the road cleared, they would boot it toward the coast.
UsageNearly always used with it as the object: boot it.
Similarfloor, gun
15
unofficial recordingnouncolloquial
An unofficial or unauthorized recording, especially of a live performance, copied and shared without the artist's permission.
Like a fan's home tape passed hand to hand outside the record store.
The boot of that 1973 gig has better sound than the official album.
I am looking to trade Iron Maiden boots. I have many Iron Maiden bootlegs. I have lots of Metallica. I trade CDR's, tapes and videos.
1999, Tom Fletcher, “Looking for Iron Maiden boot traders”
UsageOutside collectors' talk, the full word bootleg is clearer.
Note
Collector's shorthand clipped from bootleg. In Tom Fletcher's 1999 post 'Looking for Iron Maiden boot traders', in alt.music.bootlegs, boots and bootlegs sit side by side as the same thing.
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts
Boot is a shortening of bootleg. en.wiktionary.org
Wiktionary documents Tom Fletcher's 1999 post titled 'Looking for Iron Maiden boot traders' in alt.music.bootlegs, using boots and bootlegs for the same recordings. en.wiktionary.org
16
throw upverbslangintransitive
To bring up the contents of the stomach through the mouth; to vomit.
After too many drinks, he had to boot in the alley.
The seasick passengers booted over the rail all morning.
UsageSet phrase: boot and rally, to vomit and keep drinking. In polite company, say be sick or throw up.
Similarpuke, vomit, spew, barf, hurl
17
torture devicenouncountable
A torture device clamped on the feet or legs to crush them, such as the Spanish boot.
The jailer locked the boot around the prisoner's calf and turned the screw.
Many confessed under threat of the boot rather than face its iron jaws.
Note
An instrument of judicial torture, usually named with the definite article: the boot, as one says the rack. Rollo Ahmed's The Black Art (1936) lists it beside thumbscrews and shackles. The Spanish boot is a well-known named form. In historical writing it is literal, which keeps it distinct from the figurative boot of oppression.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts
The boot was an instrument of judicial torture. dundeescottishculture.org
Rollo Ahmed wrote The Black Art, first published in 1936. openlibrary.org
The Black Art lists the boot beside thumbscrews and shackles. en.wiktionary.org
18
baseball errornouncountable
A fielding error in which a player mishandles or fumbles a batted ball.
The shortstop's boot allowed the winning run to score.
A couple of boots in the field rattled the young pitcher.
Similarerror, fumble, bobble, muff
Note
A baseball term for the fumble in the field. Typically an infielder fails to handle a grounder cleanly, and the ball bounces off the glove or squirts away. The play is scored as an error. It belongs to the talk of players and broadcasters, while the scorebook records the same moment more formally.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts
Boot is a baseball term for a fielding fumble. en.wiktionary.org
The term typically describes mishandling a ground ball. en.wikipedia.org
In the specified sense, the play is recorded as an error. en.wikipedia.org
Scorekeeping formally records fielding errors. en.wikipedia.org
19
ugly personnounslangBritishcountable
A person considered very unattractive, especially a woman regarded as plain or ugly.
Calling someone a boot to their face is needlessly cruel.
The tabloids cruelly branded the actress an old boot.
UsageUsually in the phrase old boot. It is a harsh insult, hurtful even as a joke.
Similardog, hag
Oppositebeauty, stunner
20
verbdated
To put on boots, especially in preparation for riding.
Coated and booted for it.
1641, Ben Jonson, Discoveries Made upon Men and Matter
21
noundialectal
The hard, crusty end piece of a loaf of bread, cut from either end.
22
nounslang
A vehicle's tire, especially one fitted to a race car.
23
noun
An inflatable rubber strip along the leading edge of an aircraft wing, expanded periodically to crack and shed built-up ice.
24
noun
A rigid case for carrying a rifle or other long gun, usually molded to its shape.
25
nounslang
A linear amplifier connected to a CB radio to boost its transmitting power.
26
noun
The inflated sheath of the flag leaf on a wheat plant, enclosing the developing head before it emerges.
27
verbdialectalMulticultural London English
To shoot a person with a firearm, especially to kill them.
28
nounobsolete
Profit or material gain, especially goods seized as plunder.
29
nounobsolete
On an old horse-drawn coach, a seat on the outside, at the side or at the front or back, where servants or guards rode.
30
nounarchaic
On a horse-drawn coach, a compartment at the front or rear where travelers' luggage was stowed.
31
nounslang
A contemptuous term for a Black person.
32
nounarchaic
A way of putting a wrong right, or relief from trouble.
next her Son, our soul's best boot
1820, William Wordsworth, The Prioress' Tale (from Chaucer)
33
noun
Something extra handed over in a trade so that both sides receive equal value.
34
nounobsolete
Benefit or advantage gained from something.
Then talk no more of flight, it is no boot.
1591, William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”
35
nounobsolete
The work of mending buildings or other structures.
36
nounobsolete
A medicine or treatment that heals an illness.
37
verbarchaic
To be of use or advantage to someone.
Think you that we should quarrel with the French? / What boots to us your victories, your glory? / We pay, we fight, you profit at your ease.
1794, Robert Southey, Wat Tyler. A Dramatic Poem. In Three Acts
38
verbarchaic
To make a difference or be of any importance.
What boots whether it be Westminster or a little country spire which covers your ashes, or if, a few days sooner or later, the world forgets you?
1848, William Makepeace Thackeray, The History of Pendennis.
39
verbarchaic
To make someone or something richer.
And I will boot thee with what guift beſide / Thy modeſtie can begge.
c. 1606, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of boot apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origins

Meanings 1, 4–14, 16–19

Old French bote, meaning a high, thick shoe, gave Middle English boote or bote ("shoe"). Where the French word came from is obscure. It is probably connected with Old French bot ("club-foot") and with words meaning "fat, short, blunt," which go back through Old Frankish and Proto-Germanic to a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to strike, push." If that is right, boot is a doublet of butt.

Meanings 2–3

A clipping of bootstrap.

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 1 fact

Boot in its computing sense is a clipping of bootstrap. en.wiktionary.org

Meaning 15

From bootleg ("to make or sell illegally"), by shortening.

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 1 fact

Boot is a shortening of bootleg, meaning to make or sell illegally. en.wiktionary.org