boy
A child who is male.
A male child or a young male person who has not yet reached adulthood.
An informal word for a man who is your friend.
An informal term for an adult male friend, often used in plural to refer to a group of male friends.
Used to show strong feeling like surprise or excitement.
'Boy' used as an exclamation to express strong feelings such as surprise, excitement, or emphasis, often followed by 'oh'.
- Base: boy
- Plural: boys
boys will be boys
1Accepting typical male behavior
People say this when they accept that men or boys sometimes behave in silly or rough ways.
- Don't worry about the mess — boys will be boys.
- He got into trouble again, but boys will be boys.
like a boy in a candy store
1Very excited about many options
Feeling very happy and excited because there are many things you like around you.
- He was like a boy in a candy store when he saw all the new gadgets.
- She walked into the library like a boy in a candy store.
oh boy
1'Oh boy' to show emotion
Used to show you are excited, happy, worried, or surprised.
- Oh boy, this is going to be fun!
- Oh boy, I forgot my keys again.
oh boy
1excitement or dread
We say “oh boy” when we feel excited or when we expect problems.
- Oh boy! We’re going to Disneyland tomorrow.
- Oh boy, here we go again.
- Oh boy, this is going to be a long meeting.
- Oh boy!
- Oh boy, not again.