bought

English Online Dictionary. What means bought‎? What does bought mean?

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /bɔːt/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /bɔt/
• (cot–caught merger) IPA^(key): /bɑt/
• Homophone: bot (cot–caught merger)
• Rhymes: -ɔːt

Etymology 1

See buy.

Verb

bought

1. simple past and past participle of buy.

Adjective

bought

1. (informal, politics) Compromised by money from special interests; corrupt.

Usage notes

It is common to hear native English speakers (particularly in Australia, New Zealand and Britain) use "bought" when meaning "brought" (and vice versa) despite the fact that the two words mean different things [2][3]. Sometimes this mistake makes its way into print [4], [5], [6].

Synonyms

• bought and paid for

Derived terms

Etymology 2

From Middle English bought, bowght, bouȝt, *buȝt, probably an alteration of bight, biȝt, byȝt (“bend, bight”) after bowen, buwen, buȝen (“to bow, bend”). Cognate with Scots boucht, bucht, bout (“bend”). More at bight and bout.

Alternative forms

• bout, bowt
• boughte, bughte

Noun

bought (plural boughts)

1. (obsolete) A bend; flexure; curve; a hollow angle.
2. (obsolete) A bend or hollow in a human or animal body.
3. (obsolete) A curve or bend in a river, mountain chain, or other geographical feature.
4. (obsolete) The part of a sling that contains the stone.
5. (obsolete) A fold, bend, or coil in a tail, snake's body etc.

References

• “bought”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
  
• The Oxford English Dictionary.

Anagrams

• hog tub, hog-tub, hogtub