Illustration of boss
- boss 1c
1
: a person who exercises control or authority
union bosses
a mafia boss
specifically
: one who directs or supervises workers
asking your boss for a raise
2
politics
: one who controls votes in a party organization or dictates appointments or legislative measures
standing up to the party bosses
bossed; bossing; bosses
1
: to give usually arbitrary orders to
—usually used with around
Quit bossing me around.
2
: to exercise control or authority over : to act as boss (see boss entry 1) of
need someone to boss that job
slang
: excellent, first-rate
a boss new rock band
1
a
: a raised ornamentation (as on a belt or shield) : stud
b
: an ornamental projecting block used in architecture
c
: a protuberant part or body
a boss of granite
a boss on an animal's horn
2
: a soft pad used in ceramics and glassmaking
3
: the hub of a propeller
bossed; bossing; bosses
1
: to embellish (something, such as a belt or shield) with a raised decoration : to ornament with bosses (see boss entry 4) : emboss
a bossed book cover
2
: to treat (something, such as the surface of porcelain) with a boss
Did you know?
The Dutch settlements in North America all came under English rule in the 1660s and 1670s, but Dutch continued to be spoken in the region long afterward. In American English, the lexical heritage of the Dutch colonies includes dope, stoop (meaning “porch”), and Santa Claus. Perhaps the most pervasive Dutch loanword is boss, from the Dutch baas, meaning “master.” The word first appears in the form boss in 1806, used by Washington Irving. Part of its success seems to have resulted from an American aversion to master, which was common in British use.
Synonyms
Noun (1)
Verb (1)
Adjective
- A-OK
- A1
- awesome
- bang-up
- banner
- beautiful
- blue-chip
- blue-ribbon
- boffo
- bonny [chiefly British]
- bonnie
- brag
- brave
- bully
- bumper
- capital
- choice
- classic
- cool [slang]
- corking
- crackerjack
- cracking
- dandy
- divine
- dope [slang]
- down [slang]
- dynamite
- excellent
- fab
- fabulous
- famous
- fantabulous [slang]
- fantastic
- fine
- first-class
- first-rate
- first-string
- five-star
- four-star
- frontline
- gangbusters
- gangbuster
- gilt-edged
- gilt-edge
- gone [slang]
- grand
- great
- groovy
- heavenly
- high-class
- hot
- hype [slang]
- immense
- jim-dandy
- keen
- lovely
- marvelous
- marvellous
- mean
- neat
- nifty
- noble
- number one
- No. 1
- numero uno
- out-of-sight [slang]
- par excellence
- peachy
- peachy keen
- phat [slang]
- prime
- primo [slang]
- prize
- prizewinning
- quality
- radical [slang]
- righteous [slang]
- sensational
- slick
- splendid
- stellar
- sterling
- superb
- superior
- superlative
- supernal
- swell
- terrific
- tip-top
- top
- top-notch
- top-of-the-line
- top-shelf
- topflight
- topping [chiefly British]
- unsurpassed
- wizard [chiefly British]
- wonderful
Example Sentences
Adjective
a boss new rock band
that's a really boss stereo you've got
Recent Examples on the Web
Michael Schneider, Variety, 26 June 2023
As for Cadillac’s future, U.S. boss Rory Harvey is bullish on competition.
—Basem Wasef, Robb Report, 25 June 2023
Dennis had two reasons to impress: a new fan base, and an old boss who is very familiar with PIR.
—Ndaschel, oregonlive, 24 June 2023
Top officials across Russia released comments supporting Putin, making the Wagner boss appear isolated.
—Paul Sonne, BostonGlobe.com, 24 June 2023
Joel McHale The Community star follows up a memorable season 1 cameo as Carmy’s former abusive boss, with an equally stress-inducing appearance in the finale.
—Shannon Carlin, Time, 22 June 2023
Autoshop owner sued after dumping 500 pounds of pennies on ex-employee's driveway Flaten quit his job at A OK after an argument with his boss and contacted the Labor Department in January 2021 to say he was owed $915.
—Rebekah Riess, CNN, 21 June 2023
This is a story of an invention not driven by much more than frustration—and tells the tale of one of America’s first innovative girl bosses.
—Popsci Staff, Popular Science, 21 June 2023
New cast additions include Geyer, Thomas Lennon as Zoey’s boss and Owen Thiele as her friend Archer March.
—Christy Piña, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 June 2023
Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 1 June 2023
What better place to target that regression against a City offense that performs exponentially better at home and has bossed fellow Big Six opponents?
—Nick Hennion, Chicago Tribune, 31 Mar. 2023
The recipients of the emails felt confused, bossed around and uninvolved.
—Janine Schindler, Forbes, 4 May 2023
Further, their defense has bossed the Clippers in two head-to-head meetings this season.
—Nick Hennion, Chicago Tribune, 16 Feb. 2023
In addition to co-writing the 2011 Ryan Reynolds Green Lantern movie, Guggenheim also recently worked on the splashy Green Lantern TV series developed for HBO Max, though that series is no longer moving forward under a change in direction by new DC Studios bosses James Gunn and Peter Safran.
—Aaron Couch, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Feb. 2023
Indeed, one reason that older sisters feel so comfortable bossing younger ones around and giving them advice is precisely because there is a strong connection between them.
—Deborah Tannen, Scientific American, 1 Mar. 2016
Will Marshall finally boss up?
—Vulture, 4 Apr. 2023
Brentford has bossed weaker competition at home this season.
—Nick Hennion, Chicago Tribune, 18 Mar. 2023
Sabrina Eaton, cleveland, 6 Nov. 2020
This excludes things like putting in legendaries for end of mission rewards or taking them out of non-boss chests.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes, 12 Mar. 2021
See More
Noun
If this year’s Emmy ballots are any indication, the era of Peak TV may truly be over — which FX boss John Landgraf has of course been predicting for some time.
—Michael Schneider, Variety, 26 June 2023
As for Cadillac’s future, U.S. boss Rory Harvey is bullish on competition.
—Basem Wasef, Robb Report, 25 June 2023
Dennis had two reasons to impress: a new fan base, and an old boss who is very familiar with PIR.
—Ndaschel, oregonlive, 24 June 2023
Top officials across Russia released comments supporting Putin, making the Wagner boss appear isolated.
—Paul Sonne, BostonGlobe.com, 24 June 2023
Joel McHale The Community star follows up a memorable season 1 cameo as Carmy’s former abusive boss, with an equally stress-inducing appearance in the finale.
—Shannon Carlin, Time, 22 June 2023
Autoshop owner sued after dumping 500 pounds of pennies on ex-employee's driveway Flaten quit his job at A OK after an argument with his boss and contacted the Labor Department in January 2021 to say he was owed $915.
—Rebekah Riess, CNN, 21 June 2023
This is a story of an invention not driven by much more than frustration—and tells the tale of one of America’s first innovative girl bosses.
—Popsci Staff, Popular Science, 21 June 2023
New cast additions include Geyer, Thomas Lennon as Zoey’s boss and Owen Thiele as her friend Archer March.
—Christy Piña, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 June 2023
Verb
The drolly demented new thriller (now playing in select cities, in theaters nationwide Friday) follows a wealthy hotel heir named Hal (Christopher Abbott), who gets pleasure from being bossed around and humiliated by his longtime dominatrix, Rebecca (Margaret Qualley).
—Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 1 June 2023
What better place to target that regression against a City offense that performs exponentially better at home and has bossed fellow Big Six opponents?
—Nick Hennion, Chicago Tribune, 31 Mar. 2023
The recipients of the emails felt confused, bossed around and uninvolved.
—Janine Schindler, Forbes, 4 May 2023
Further, their defense has bossed the Clippers in two head-to-head meetings this season.
—Nick Hennion, Chicago Tribune, 16 Feb. 2023
In addition to co-writing the 2011 Ryan Reynolds Green Lantern movie, Guggenheim also recently worked on the splashy Green Lantern TV series developed for HBO Max, though that series is no longer moving forward under a change in direction by new DC Studios bosses James Gunn and Peter Safran.
—Aaron Couch, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Feb. 2023
Indeed, one reason that older sisters feel so comfortable bossing younger ones around and giving them advice is precisely because there is a strong connection between them.
—Deborah Tannen, Scientific American, 1 Mar. 2016
Will Marshall finally boss up?
—Vulture, 4 Apr. 2023
Brentford has bossed weaker competition at home this season.
—Nick Hennion, Chicago Tribune, 18 Mar. 2023
Adjective
Binning notes that Democratic U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of the Niles area, a former Traficant aide who won his ex-boss' congressional seat, was re-elected Tuesday by his smallest-ever margin, defeating GOP former state legislator Christina Hagan by 7.5 percentage points.
—Sabrina Eaton, cleveland, 6 Nov. 2020
This excludes things like putting in legendaries for end of mission rewards or taking them out of non-boss chests.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes, 12 Mar. 2021
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'boss.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Noun (1), Verb (1), and Adjective
Dutch baas master
Noun (2) and Verb (2)
Middle English boce, from Anglo-French, from Vulgar Latin *bottia
Noun (3)
English dialect, young cow
First Known Use
Noun (1)
1653, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Verb (1)
1856, in the meaning defined at sense 2
Adjective
1836, in the meaning defined above
Noun (2)
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1c
Verb (2)
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Noun (3)
1790, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of boss was
in the 14th century
Phrases Containing boss
Articles Related to boss
Dictionary Entries Near boss
Cite this Entry
“Boss.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/boss. Accessed 9 Jul. 2023.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
boss
2 of 5 verb
: to ornament with bosses : emboss
boss
3 of 5 nounˈbȯs
1
: the person (as an employer or supervisor) who tells workers what to do
2
: the head of a group
especially
: a powerful politician who controls party business
boss
adjective
boss
4 of 5 verb1
: to be in charge of
boss a job
2
: to give orders to
don't boss me around
boss
5 of 5 adjective
slang
Etymology
Noun
Middle English boce "raised rounded part," from early French boce (same meaning)
Noun
from Dutch baas "master"
Medical Definition
boss
noun
: a protuberant part or body
a boss on an animal's horn
More from Merriam-Webster on boss
Nglish: Translation of boss for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of boss for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about boss
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