# bully

Pronunciation: say "BUU-lee" /ˈbʊli/

## Noun

1. A person who uses strength, threats, or cruelty to frighten, hurt, or dominate others, especially those who are weaker or less powerful.
   - Simple: Someone who hurts, frightens, or threatens people who are weaker than them.
   - _The office bully mocked new hires in meetings until HR finally stepped in._
   - _Years later, he admitted that he had been a bully in middle school._
6. A thug hired to use force or threats on someone else's behalf.
   - Simple: A rough person paid to scare or hurt people for someone else.
   - _The mine owners brought in hired bullies to break up the strike._
   - _A local boss sent his favorite bully around to collect the debt._
7. Canned corned beef; a short form of bully beef.
   - Simple: Corned beef that comes in a can.
   - _The ration packs held cans of bully, crackers, and tea._
   - _Camp cooks fried the bully with onions to make it more appetizing._
8. Any of various small fish of the family Eleotridae, the sleeper gobies, that live in fresh or brackish water.
   - Simple: A small fish that lives in fresh water or in water that is a little salty.
   - _The survey recorded at least one bully in almost every pool along the lower creek._
   - _Bullies were the most common fish in the brackish lagoon behind the dunes._
9. In field hockey, a way of restarting play in which one player from each team taps the ground and then the other's stick (now once, formerly three times) before both try to win the ball.
   - Simple: In field hockey, a restart where two players tap sticks and then go for the ball.
   - _After the injury stoppage, the umpire restarted play with a bully near the circle._
   - _Their captain was quick on the bully and nearly always came away with the ball._
10. A companion or mate, whether a man or a woman. *(dialectal)*
   - Simple: A friend or companion, who can be a man or a woman.

## Verb

2. To intimidate someone the way a bully does, with cruelty or threats.
   - Simple: To frighten someone by being cruel or threatening to them.
   - _Investigators found that the manager had bullied staff into working unpaid overtime._
   - _Some kids bully others online because they think no one will find out._
3. To act aggressively toward someone or something, pushing them around.
   - Simple: To act in a rough, pushy way toward someone.
   - _The home side bullied the visitors' defense from the opening whistle._
   - _Hulking SUVs bully cyclists off the narrow mountain road._

## Interjection

4. Used to express praise for something well done, often followed by for; in modern use it is often sarcastic.
   - Simple: Used to say well done, though today it is often said in a mocking way.
   - _'I ran five miles before breakfast.' 'Well, bully for you,' she muttered without looking up._
   - _When her coworker bragged about his new boat again, she rolled her eyes and said, "Bully for you."_

## Adjective

5. Very good or excellent. *(dated, US)*
   - Simple: Very good or great.
14. Good-humored and hearty, but loud and boastful in manner. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Cheerful and friendly, but loud and full of big talk.

## Noun

11. A brother, or specifically an eldest brother; also a fellow workman or comrade. *(obsolete, Ireland, Northern England)*
   - Simple: A brother, or the oldest brother in a family. Also a man you work with, or a good friend.
12. A darling or sweetheart, whether a man or a woman. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Someone you love dearly, whether a man or a woman.
13. A lively, energetic man with a bold, stylish air. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A lively man who is bold and stylish.

## Other meanings

- (noun) A person who acts as a minder for a sex worker, guarding and watching over them.
- (noun) A hammer used by miners in their work.
- (noun) The small scrum that forms during play in the Eton College field game.

## Origin

It shows up in 1530 as a word of affection, probably a diminutive of Dutch boel ("lover, brother"). That came from Middle Dutch boel, boele and goes back to Proto-Germanic *bōlô (compare Middle High German buole, "brother, close relative," the source of German Buhle, "lover"). In the 17th century the word took a negative turn, meaning first a noisy, blustering fellow and later someone who is cruel to others, possibly under the influence of bull ("male cattle") or the "prostitute's minder" sense. Its positive senses are dated but live on in expressions like bully pulpit.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/bully (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).