bully

Etymology

From 1530, as a term of endearment, probably a diminutive ( + -y) of Dutch boel (“lover; brother”), from Middle Dutch boel, boele (“brother; lover”), from Old Dutch *buolo, from Proto-Germanic *bōlô (compare Middle Low German bôle (“brother”), Middle High German buole (“brother; close relative; close relation”) (whence German Buhle (“lover”)), Old English Bōla, Bōlla (personal name), diminutive of expressive *bō- (“brother, father”). Compare also Latvian bālinš (“brother”). More at boy. The term acquired negative senses during the 17th century; first ‘noisy, blustering fellow’ then ‘a person who is cruel to others’. Possibly influenced by bull (“male cattle”) or via the ‘prostitute's minder’ sense. The positive senses are dated, but survive in phrases such as bully pulpit.

noun

1. A person who is intentionally physically or emotionally cruel to others, especially to those whom they perceive as being vulnerable or of less power or privilege.
   A playground bully pushed a girl off the swing.
   I noticed you being a bully towards people with disabilities.
2. A noisy, blustering, tyrannical person, more insolent than courageous; one who is threatening and quarrelsome.
   Besides, bullies seldom execute the threats they deal in; and men of trick and cunning are not always men of desperate resolves. 1840-09-22, Lord Palmerston, The Life of Henry John Temple, Viscount of Palmerston, 3rd edition, volume 2, published 1871, page 327
3. A hired thug.
   Mr. Fisher returned from town... he had learnt that our opponents intended to shift the scene of operations to the Chats... We understood that they had hired two bullies for the purpose of deciding the matter par voie de fait. Mr Fisher hired two of the same description, who were supposed to be more than a match for the opposition party. 1849, John McLean, Notes of a Twenty-Five Years' Service in the Hudson's Bay Territory, pages 42–3
4. A sex worker’s minder.
   The Proclamation Society and the Society for the Suppression of Vice were more concerned with obscene literature […] than with hands-on street battles with prostitutes and their bullies […]. 2009, Dan Cruikshank, Secret History of Georgian London, Random House, page 473
5. (uncountable) Bully beef.
6. (obsolete) A brisk, dashing fellow.
7. The small scrum in the Eton College field game.
8. Any of various small freshwater or brackishwater fish of the family Eleotridae; sleeper gobies. , Gobiomorphus cotidianus]]
9. (obsolete or dialectal, Ireland and Northern England) An (eldest) brother; a fellow workman; comrade
   Frae Team Gut to Whitley, we' coals black an' brown For the Amphitrite loaded, the keel had come down— But the bullies ower neet had their gobs se oft wet, That the nyem o' the ship yen an' a' did forget. 1824, Robert Gilchrist, “The Skipper's Erudition”, in A Collection of Original Local Songs, page 11
10. (dialectal) A companion; mate (male or female).
11. (obsolete) A darling, sweetheart (male or female).
    I have promised to be with the sweet bully early in the morning of her important day. 1753, Samuel Richardson, “Letter 15”, in The History of Sir Charles Grandison
    What! manim-an—kiss your child, man alive. That I may never, but he looks at the darlin’ as if it was a sod of turf! Throth you’re not worthy of havin’ such a bully. 1848, William Carleton, Fardorougha the Miser, page 16
12. (field hockey) A standoff between two players from the opposing teams, who repeatedly hit each other's hockey sticks and then attempt to acquire the ball, as a method of resuming the game in certain circumstances.
13. (mining) A miner's hammer.

verb

1. (transitive) To intimidate (someone) as a bully.
   You shouldn't bully people for being weak.
   United States Sen. Marsha Blackburn on Thursday became the latest member of Congress to visit Taiwan defying pressure from Beijing, saying, "I will not be bullied by Communist China into turning my back on the island." August 26, 2022, Brad Lendon, “'Xi Jinping doesn't scare me': US Sen. Marsha Blackburn lands in Taiwan, vows not to be bullied by China”, in CNN, archived from the original on 2022-08-26
2. (transitive) To act aggressively towards.
   The Potters know their strengths and played to them perfectly here, out-muscling Bolton in midfield and bullying the visitors' back-line at every opportunity. January 15, 2011, Sam Sheringham, “Chelsea 2 -03 Blackburn Rovers”, in BBC

adj

1. (US, slang) Very good.
   a bully horse
   To sing a bully song I'll try, / Bully for you, bully for you, / Gay as they make them, here I am, / Bully for you, for you. 1861, Daniel Bryant, Bryant's Songs from Dixie's Land, page 19
   She is a bully woman, not only a good mother, but a wonderful in-law 1916, The Independent, volumes 35-36, page 6
2. (slang, obsolete) Jovial and blustering.
   Bless thee, bully doctor! 1597, William Shakespeare, The Merry Wives of Windsor, act II, scene iii

intj

1. (often followed by for) Well done!
   Bully, she's finally asked for that promotion!
   Bully! Bully! Finis coronet opus, “the end crowns all”; “may the last be the best!” By Godfrey it was delightful. 1979, Jerome Alden, Bully: An Adventure with Teddy Roosevelt, →OCLC, page 3