# booty

/ˈbuti/ (US) · /bˈuːti/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/booty
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. stolen treasure

noun · CEFR B2

valuable things or money stolen by pirates or soldiers during a war.

For teachers: plunder or goods taken from an enemy in war or seized through piracy.

- The pirates divided the booty equally among the crew after the raid.
- Historical accounts suggest that the distribution of booty was strictly regulated by a code of conduct signed by every sailor before the voyage began.

### 3. sexual partner or act

noun · CEFR C1 · Slang · Vulgar

a very informal and sometimes rude way to talk about sex or a person someone has sex with.

For teachers: sexual intercourse or a person viewed as a sexual partner. Highly informal and potentially objectifying.

- He was just looking for some booty and wasn't interested in a real relationship.
- The phrase 'booty call' became a standard late-night idiom in the 1990s to describe a spontaneous request for a sexual encounter.

### 4. bad or low quality

adjective · CEFR C2 · Slang · American English

something that is very bad, cheap, or disappointing.

For teachers: of inferior quality; worthless or poorly executed.

- I'm not going back to that club because the music was totally booty.
- While the special effects were impressive, the actual plot of the movie was booty, leading to overwhelmingly negative reviews from critics.

## Examples

- The dancer moved her booty to the beat of the music.
- The fitness instructor promised that these specific leg exercises would help tone your booty over time.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.