boost
/buːst/noun, verb
boost is spelled B-O-O-S-T: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 26 times per million words in written English, the 3,558th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, boost means “A push from behind or below, as to one who is endeavoring to climb” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of boost is boosts.
How many letters and syllables are in boost?
| Letters | 5: B-O-O-S-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 26 times per million words; the 3,558th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is boost?
Boost appears 26 times per million words in written English, the 3,558th 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 boost?
- /buːst/
- /bʉst/
Boost has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-boost.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with boost?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as boost.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: boots.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of boost
- boosts plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- boosting participle, present
- boosted participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does boost mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A push from behind or below, as to one who is endeavoring to climb.
- 2
Something that helps, or adds power or effectiveness; assistance.
The controversy gave a boost to the author's sales.
- 3
A coordinate transformation that changes velocity.
- 4
A positive intake manifold pressure in cars with turbochargers or superchargers.
verb
- 1
To lift or push from behind (one who is endeavoring to climb); to push up.
- 2
To help or encourage (something) to increase or improve; to assist in overcoming obstacles.
This campaign will boost your chances of winning the election.
- 3
slangTo steal.
- 4
CanadaTo jump-start a vehicle by using cables to connect the battery in a running vehicle to the battery in a vehicle that won't start.
- 5
To give a booster shot to.
- 6
To amplify; to signal boost.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Boost in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Boost , Unterstützung , schieben, drücken , anspornen, verstärken |
| Portuguese | impulso , impulsionar |
| Spanish | mosh, subidón, impulsión , aupar, upar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does boost come from?
Unknown. The verb is first recorded 1815; the noun, 1825. Compare Scots boost (“to move; drive off; shoo away”), bost, boast (“to threaten; scold”), Middle English boosten, bosten (“to threaten”). Possible doublet of boast.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).