Word Confusion: Boy versus Buoy

Revised as of
26 Oct 2022

Oh, buoy, what a mess. It’s not as if buoy is such a commonly used word in a story, and if a story has a maritime setting, then I’d assume the author knew the difference between boy and buoy, even if the words are a pair of heterographs.

Of course, it’s always possible that the author was too confident in his (or her) spellcheck tools . . . which is always a mistake. Spellchecks can’t, yet, determine proper spelling based on context. As it is, the spellcheck tool can see the word is properly spelled. It can’t tell that it’s the wrong correctly spelled word for that sentence.

Meanwhile, get the boys to pay attention to their grammar, er, buoys marking the channel into the harbor.

Word Confusions . . .

. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.

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Boy	Buoy
Khmer Children, courtesy of Sovanna02 (Kompong Thom, Cambodia), is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. — A pair of boys with the older boy welcoming the baby boy to the family.	Buoy Seal by User:RadicalBender (Special:Contributions/User:RadicalBender) is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. — The sea lion gives you a good idea how big that buoy is!
Part of Grammar:
Exclamation; Noun Plural: boys	Adjective; Noun; Verb, intransitive & transitive Plural for the noun; buoys Gerund: buoying Third person present verb: buoys Past tense or past participle: buoyed Present participle: buoying
Exclamation: [Informal] Used to express strong feelings, especially of excitement or admiration Noun: Male child or young man A son A male child or young man who does a specified job Used informally or lightheartedly to refer to a man [Dated] Used as a friendly form of address from one man to another, often from an older man to a young man [Dated, offensive, often used as a form of address] A black or other race considered inferior by the one using the term to a male servant or worker Used as a form of address to a male dog	Adjective: Describing the use of buoys Noun: Anchored float serving as a navigation mark, to show reefs or other hazards, or for mooring. Verb, intransitive: Float (usually used with up) Verb, transitive: Keep someone or something afloat [Often used as be buoyed] Cause to become cheerful or confident Cause a price to rise to or remain at a high level Mark with a buoy
Examples:
Exclamation: Oh boy, that’s wonderful! Oh boy, you shouldn’t have dropped that vase! Noun: A group of six boys came into the store She put her little boy to bed. A delivery boy appeared with a floral bouquet. The inspector was a local boy. My dear boy, don’t say another word! You, boy, come here! Down, boy, down!	Adjective: Thankfully, it was a buoyed channel. “The skiff wanted to break free, the buoy ropes were slick with weed, and my knees and ribs were sore after just two pots” (Wolk). Noun: The buoys mark the entrance to the harbor. Several buoys washed ashore. We released the buoy and drifted back on the tide. The kids swam out toward the buoy. Verb, intransitive: They buoyed up like a cork. “But we left the show buoyed, at least for the night” (Sullivan). Verb, transitive: I let the water buoy up my weight. The party was buoyed by an election victory. The price is buoyed up by investors.
Derivatives:
Adjective: boyish Noun: boyhood	Adjective: buoyant, unbuoyed Noun: buoyancy
History of the Word:
While its origin is unknown, its first use was in Middle English to denote a male servant.	Middle English probably from the Middle Dutch boye, boeie, from a Germanic base meaning signal.

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C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!

Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.

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Resources for Boy versus Buoy

Some of these links are affiliate links, and I will earn a small percentage, if you should buy it. It does not affect the price you pay.

Apple Dictionary.com

The Free Dictionary: buoy

Merriam-Webster: buoy

Sullivan, James. “The Play That Took Me Inside My Autistic Son’s Head.” The Atlantic. 30 Apr 2015. Web. 26 Oct 2022. <https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/04/curious-incident/391859/>.

Wolk, Lauren. Beyond the Bright Sea. Puffin Books, 2018. <https://amzn.to/3W5qDES>. Reprint.

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Pinterest Photo Credits:

Boy Scouts Association in Britain was photographed by Nicholls, Horace, and is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. The photograph was taken during World War I of “a member of the Sea Scouts [British Boy Scouts] bringing in a buoy which had been washed up on the shore”.