boogaloo
boo·ga·loo/ˈbuɡəˌlu/noun, verb
boogaloo is spelled B-O-O-G-A-L-O-O: 8 letters and 3 syllables (boo·ga·loo). It appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 59,387th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, boogaloo means “A genre of music that blends rhythm and blues and soul music with Cuban-style rhythms, originating in the United States in the 1960s” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of boogaloo is boogaloos.
How many letters and syllables are in boogaloo?
| Letters | 8: B-O-O-G-A-L-O-O |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: boo·ga·loo |
| In writing | about once in every 4 million words; the 59,387th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is boogaloo?
Boogaloo appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 59,387th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce boogaloo?
- UK /ˈbuːɡəˌluː/
- UK /ˌbuːɡəˈluː/
- US /ˈbuɡəˌlu/
Boogaloo has 3 syllables, split boo·ga·loo in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-boogaloo.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of boogaloo
- boogaloos plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- boogalooing participle, present
- boogalooed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does boogaloo mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A genre of music that blends rhythm and blues and soul music with Cuban-style rhythms, originating in the United States in the 1960s.
- 2
A style of dance to this music, popular in the 1960s.
- 3
A piece of music, or an instance of dancing, in or of this style.
- 4
A type of freestyle, improvisational street dance incorporating soulful steps and robotic movements, originally danced to funk and disco, but later more commonly to hip-hop.
- 5
A sequel or repetition of events, etc. Often used to mock a lack of creativity.
Electric boogaloo meme
- 6
USA hypothetical second American Civil War, in which far-right or antigovernment activists rise up against the government.
- 7
datedderogatoryA black person.
verb
- 1
To dance in this style.
She would have screamed in the judge's face, getting her man ninety years and a day. "You two boogaloo like an old married couple," I tell them after they've danced stiffly for a few minutes.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does boogaloo come from?
Attested as a style of dance since at least January 1966 (and found in the titles of many songs around that time), perhaps from boogie (for the ending, compare crackaloo, hullabaloo). (Compare Spanish bugalú, the Spanish name for the style of music and dance.) Kent Harris used the stage name "Boogaloo" in the 1950s. The sense "sequel or repetition" refers to the title of Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo (1984), a sequel which was considered to be so bad it became a cult classic. Compare the sense "black person" to boogalee, a term for a Cajun, attested since 1960 or earlier.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).