politicians complaining about that old bugaboo, high oil prices doing one's tax returns are a real bugaboo for some people

Recent Examples on the Web

The West was Ohio State’s bugaboo in 2018 and ’19, with road losses to Iowa and Purdue placing a hard ceiling on what the Buckeyes could accomplish. Nathan Baird, cleveland, "Ohio State football should not dismiss emerging threat from Big Ten’s Wild West: Buckeye Take," 10 June 2020

Paul’s fourth-quarter surge never materialized, and the Spurs even overcame an age-old bugaboo and made foul shots down the stretch to salt away the victory. Jeff Mcdonald, ExpressNews.com, "Dejounte Murray’s career high helps San Antonio Spurs stop bleeding," 11 Feb. 2020

There is also the perennial bugaboo that always has some of the stars uninterested in attending. Kevin Paul Dupont, BostonGlobe.com, "Here’s why the NHL All-Star Game would be better at the start of season," 31 Jan. 2020

Shesterkin was getting a crash course in the Rangers’ bugaboo, a porous defense, a weakness that is not always a problem because of their high-scoring star, Artemi Panarin. Allan Kreda, New York Times, "A Great Goaltending Hope Arrives With a Win," 8 Jan. 2020

The 2019 bugaboo for Rivers had been unforced errors. San Diego Union-Tribune, "Column: For Chargers, a big-stage debacle that Philip Rivers was fortunate to survive," 14 Oct. 2019

In their 7-4 loss to the New York Mets on Wednesday, Colorado flashed some enticing potential, but ultimately, the same old bugaboo reared its ugly head. Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post, "Rockies blow ninth-inning lead; right-hander Jeff Hoffman turns in solid start vs. Mets," 18 Sep. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bugaboo.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.