Talk:booby

"(by extension)" has been removed for the 'bird' sense as it's not clear that it antedates the 'stupid person' sense. OED suggests Spanish bobo as a possible etymon, with the same extension of meaning as the English. Both senses of the English word appear to go back to the 16th-17th centuries. (Aabull2016 (talk) 16:56, 31 August 2016 (UTC))

Spelling
How do we know that this spelling can be used in the meaning 'boob'? Both citations are in plural, and without any larger context of their sources, one could argue that they should be moved to the page boobie. 93.106.49.50 17:47, 17 November 2018 (UTC)


 * Google "my left booby", "my right booby" for evidence. Equinox ◑ 19:37, 17 November 2018 (UTC)

Also synonym of booby-hatch (nautical)?

 * 1897, Rudyard Kipling, Captains Courageous
 * Forward lay the windlass and its tackle, with the chain and hemp cables, all very unpleasant to trip over; the foc'sle stovepipe, and the gurry-butts by the foc'sle hatch to hold the fish-livers. Aft of these the foreboom and booby of the main-hatch took all the space that was not needed for the pumps and dressing-pens.

Equinox ◑ 22:25, 24 February 2024 (UTC)