An Encylopedia Britannica Company

boy

1 boy /ˈboɪ/ noun
plural boys
1 boy
/ˈboɪ/
noun
plural boys
Britannica Dictionary definition of BOY
[count]
: a male child
: son
[count]
: a young man
: a usually young man from a specified kind of place
the boys informal : the male friends or work partners of a man viewed as a group
[singular] chiefly British, old-fashioned : a man of any age
◊ The phrases my dear boy and old boy are used as friendly ways for one man to address another man.
see also old boy
[count] : a man or boy who does a particular job
Boy is often offensive in this sense when the person being described is an adult.
see also altar boy, ball boy, batboy, bellboy, busboy, delivery boy, paperboy

boys will be boys

◊ The expression boys will be boys is used to say that it is not surprising or unusual when men or boys behave in energetic, rough, or improper ways.

separate the men from the boys

see 2separate

— boyhood

/ˈboɪˌhʊd/ noun [noncount]
often used before another noun

— boyish

/ˈbojɪʃ/ adjective [more boyish; most boyish]

— boyishness

noun [noncount]
2 boy /ˈboɪ/ interjection
2 boy
/ˈboɪ/
interjection
Britannica Dictionary definition of BOY
used as a way to express surprise or enthusiasm