as in dread
something or someone that causes fear or dread especially without reason
doing one's tax returns is a real bugaboo for a lot of people
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bugaboo
Purdy’s biggest bugaboo could be interceptions.
—
Cam Inman, Mercury News, 14 Jan. 2026
Now, for one of their chief bugaboos — a primary culprit for the mediocre record through 32 games.
—Joe Vardon, New York Times, 25 Dec. 2025
Stefon Diggs factored heavily into the comeback, specifically by defeating man-to-man coverage, which had been a bugaboo for this receiving corps lately.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 23 Dec. 2025
Getting stops should be Denver’s biggest bugaboo without Gordon and Braun.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 23 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bugaboo
Cam Inman, Mercury News, 14 Jan. 2026
Now, for one of their chief bugaboos — a primary culprit for the mediocre record through 32 games.
—Joe Vardon, New York Times, 25 Dec. 2025
Stefon Diggs factored heavily into the comeback, specifically by defeating man-to-man coverage, which had been a bugaboo for this receiving corps lately.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 23 Dec. 2025
Getting stops should be Denver’s biggest bugaboo without Gordon and Braun.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 23 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bugaboo
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bugaboo
Noun
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But some congregants’ anguish over October 7th was compounded by dread about Israel’s brutal, indiscriminate response.—
Eyal Press,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
-
If anything, all the prognostication about it is being led by dread.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The most violent and thuggish regime on earth would be free to carry out their campaigns of terror, coercion, conquest, and mass murder from behind a nuclear shield.—
James Powel,
USA Today,
2 Apr. 2026
-
By 1944, when much of the city lay in ruins, the terror spread.—
The Week US,
TheWeek,
1 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Timings, though, can often be a bugbear.—
Philip Buckingham,
New York Times,
5 Mar. 2026
-
The turbulence created in a car’s wake is the eternal bugbear of F1 fans and rulemakers.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Most references to the Arbat in the ancient chronicles are connected to fires, amid mention of invasions and plagues and noble births.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Apr. 2026
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When Pharaoh refused, God sent the 10 plagues to Egypt as punishment, destroying crops and livestock and afflicting the people, according to the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews.—
Lucia Cheng,
Des Moines Register,
1 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Fitzpatrick had a pair of early bogeys that dropped him six behind Chacarra through five holes of the final round at DLF Golf and Country Club.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
29 Mar. 2026
-
Blanchet closed with a bogey for a 66.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
20 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bugaboo.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bugaboo. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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