boot
noun /buːt/
/buːt/
Idioms enlarge image
- (British English) walking boots
- a pair of heavy walking boots
- (North American English) hiking boots
- a pair of black leather boots
- She wore black knee-high boots.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- heavy
- light
- lightweight
- …
- pair
- have on
- wear
- put on
- …
- polish
- as tough as old boots
- the toe of somebody’s boot
- (British English)
enlarge image
(North American English trunk)the space at the back of a car that you put bags, cases, etc. in- I'll put the luggage in the boot.
- Did you lock the boot?
- What have you got in the boot?
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- car
- open
- close
- shut
- …
- in the boot
- [usually singular] (informal) a quick hard kick
- He gave the ball a tremendous boot.
- (also Denver boot (both North American English), British English clamp, wheel clamp)a device that is attached to the wheel of a car that has been parked illegally, so that it cannot be driven away
Word Originnoun Middle English: from Old Norse bóti or its source, Old French bote, of unknown ultimate origin. to boot. Old English bōt ‘advantage, remedy’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch boete and German Busse ‘penance, fine’, also to better and best.
Idioms
be given the boot | get the boot
- (informal) to be told that you must leave your job or that a relationship you are having with somebody is over
- He should have been given the boot years ago.
be/get too big for your boots
(North American English also be/get too big for your britches)
- to be/become too proud of yourself; to behave as if you are more important than you really areTopics Personal qualitiesc2
the boot is on the other foot (British English)
(North American English the shoe is on the other foot)
- used to say that a situation has changed so that somebody now has power or authority over the person who used to have power or authority over them
fill your boots (informal)
- used to invite somebody to take as much as they like of something such as food, drink, etc; help yourself
fill somebody’s shoes/boots
- to do somebody’s job in an acceptable way when they are not there
lick somebody’s boots
(British English, taboo, slang lick somebody’s arse)
- (disapproving) to show too much respect for somebody in authority because you want to please them synonym crawl
put/stick the boot in (British English, informal)
- to kick somebody very hard, especially when they are on the ground
- to attack somebody by criticizing them when they are in a difficult situation
- I wonder if the press will put the boot in?
shake in your boots/shoes
- (informal) to be very frightened or nervousTopics Feelingsc2
to boot
- (old-fashioned or humorous) used to add a comment to something that you have said
- He was a vegetarian, and a fussy one to boot.
(as) tough as old boots | (as) tough as nails (informal)
- very strong and able to deal successfully with difficult conditions or situations
- She’s almost 90 but she’s still as tough as old boots.