I. bul ‧ ly 1 /ˈbʊli/ BrE AmE noun ( plural bullies ) [countable]
[ Date: 1600-1700 ; Origin: bully 'lover, someone who controls a prostitute' (16-19 centuries) , probably from Dutch boel 'lover' ]
someone who uses their strength or power to frighten or hurt someone who is weaker:
Bullies are often cowards.
II. bully 2 BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle bullied , present participle bullying , third person singular bullies ) [transitive]
1 . to threaten to hurt someone or frighten them, especially someone smaller or weaker
2 . to put pressure on someone in order to make them do what you want
bully somebody into (doing) something
Don’t let them bully you into working on Saturdays.
—bullying noun [uncountable] :
an attempt to tackle the problem of bullying in schools
bully off phrasal verb British English
to start a game of ↑ hockey
—bully-off noun [countable]
III. bully 3 BrE AmE adjective
bully for you/him etc spoken used when you do not think that someone has done anything special but they want you to praise them:
Yes, I know you’ve done all the dishes. Bully for you!