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Glite Dictionary
to boss around

to boss around

37 4.5
Tell people what to do in a rude way when you have no right
  • phrasal verb
  • /bɔs əˈraʊnd/
  • Informal
translation icon : mandar (a alguien)
  • My grandmother appeared, all dressed up, and started bossing everybody around.
  • boss people around
  • always boss people around
  • stop bossing me around

So I would sort of boss my cousins around, my brothers and sisters and we would just create our own talk shows in the living room.

Examples

Synonyms

to dictate
vsto boss around
181 5.0

To give orders that control what other people do

gives orders annoyingly without legitimate authority
to bully
vsto boss around
  • Offensive
68 3.8

To scare or hurt someone, often someone weaker

gives orders in an annoying domineering way rather than physical harm
to push around
vsto boss around
  • Informal
66 5.6

To treat someone in a bossy way so they do what you want

gives orders annoyingly often without any right
to boss
vsto boss around
48 3.1

To tell other people what to do in a rude way

gives orders in an annoying unjustified domineering way
to browbeat
vsto boss around
9 8.1

To make someone do something by threatening them or using angry words

gives orders annoyingly but not always with threats
to lord over
vsto boss around
  • Informal
8 7.5

To treat other people as if you are better than them

gives orders annoyingly without proper right
to lord it over
vsto boss around
  • Informal
6 8.2

Act as if you are better than other people

gives orders annoyingly without proper right
to hector
vsto boss around
3 8.4

To be bossy and scare someone into doing what you want

gives orders in an annoying domineering way without authority
to domineer
vsto boss around
2 8.8

To boss other people around and not let them speak

gives orders in a petty domineering way when not entitled
to bullyrag
vsto boss around
  • Offensive
9.9

To frighten or shout at someone to make them do what you want

gives orders annoyingly often without legitimate right
to ballyrag
vsto boss around
  • Archaic
9.9

Make someone feel bad by bossing or bullying them

gives orders annoyingly usually without true authority
to queen it over
vsto boss around
  • UK
9.9

Behave as if others are less important

gives orders annoyingly acting without right

Antonyms

to serve
∞ 1.7

To work for someone or act in an official role, often in the military

to follow
∞ 1.0

To act according to rules, advice, or beliefs

How Bossy

to push around
  • Informal
66 5.6
to boss around
  • Informal
37 4.5
to order
902 1.3
to tell
∞ 1.0
to ask
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

boss around infinitive
bossed around past
bossed around past participle
bossing around present participle
bosses around third person singular

Morphology

boss + around

The sense 'to give orders in an annoying or domineering way' is directly built from 'boss' (to tell others what to do forcefully) with 'around' functioning as a colloquial particle indicating manner/repeated directing rather than creating an unpredictable idiom. Because the core meaning is present in the verb and the particle only adds a pragmatic/manner nuance, a B1 learner who knows the constituents will readily infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Boss around comes from the picture of a boss walking around a room, pointing and telling people what to do even when they have no right to. So it means 'to give orders' in an annoying or rude way.