boycott
pronunciation
How to pronounce boycott in British English:
UK [ˈbɔɪkɒt]
How to pronounce boycott in American English:
US [ˈbɔɪkɑːt]
-
- Noun:
- a group's refusal to have commercial dealings with some organization in protest against its policies
-
- Verb:
- refuse to sponsor; refuse to do business with
Word Origin
- boycott
- boycott: [19] The word boycott sprang into general use in the year 1880, to describe the activities of the Irish Land League. This was an organization set up in 1879 by the Irish nationalist Michael Davitt to press for agrarian reforms, rent reductions, etc. Those who did not agree with its aims, it subjected to an organized campaign of ostracism. One of the first to suffer from this was one Captain Charles Cunningham Boycott (1832–97), a British estate manager in County Mayo. Hence ‘to boycott’, which became a buzzword of the early 1880s, was quickly adopted by other European languages, and has remained in current use ever since.
- boycott
- 1880, noun and verb, from Irish Land League ostracism of Capt. Charles C. Boycott (1832-1897), land agent of Lough-Mask in County Mayo, who refused to lower rents for his tenant farmers. Quickly adopted by newspapers in languages as far afield as Japanese (boikotto). The family name is from a place in England.
Example
- 1. Some advertisers say they will now boycott his show .
- 2. Would catholics object and boycott the company 's other products ?
- 3. Buddhist monks have led a campaign for a commercial boycott .
- 4. A partial boycott of euro 2012 may be too late .
- 5. Calls to boycott israeli goods and scrap military co-operation grew louder .