bogey
n. countablen. a thing that people are afraid of or keep worrying about — and, in old stories, a goblin or monster that frightens children (a bogeyman).
n. (noun) a source of fear, dread, or persistent anxiety — 'the bogey of inflation' — and, in folklore, an evil spirit or hobgoblin (the bogeyman). 'Bogey' also carries several unrelated senses: in golf, a score of one stroke over par; in military and aviation use, an unidentified or hostile aircraft on radar; and in British informal speech, a piece of dried nasal mucus. (Note the separate spelling 'bogie' for a railway wheel assembly.)
As a child, she was sure a bogey was hiding under the bed.
For years, rising inflation was the bogey that haunted every government budget.
Parents once invoked a nameless bogey to enforce bedtime, knowing an imagined monster settles a restless child faster than any reasoned argument.
'Bogey' has several unrelated meanings: a source of fear (this entry), a golf score one over par, an unidentified aircraft on radar, and — in British informal English — a piece of nasal mucus. Context decides which is meant.