What does boked mean?
Boked is the past tense of boke, an informal dialect verb found chiefly in Scotland and Northern Ireland meaning to vomit or retch. The word sits alongside a rich family of British and Irish colloquialisms for being sick — puke, chunder, spew, heave — but unlike many of these it is strongly tied to particular regions rather than used nationwide. Someone who has boked has been physically sick or has come close to it, often through illness, alcohol, disgust, or motion sickness; the related expression 'feeling boke' describes nausea itself. Because the word is unfamiliar outside its home regions and looks deceptively like 'booked' in writing, it can confuse readers, yet within Scottish and Northern Irish conversation it is entirely ordinary and unremarkable. For anyone interested in regional vocabulary, boked is a vivid example of how everyday bodily experiences keep their own local words long after standard English has settled on just one or two terms.
verbPast tense and past participle of 'boke', a chiefly Scottish and Northern Irish dialect word meaning to vomit or retch.
- To have vomited or felt the urge to retch (dialectal, Scotland and Northern Ireland)
"He'd boked so much on the ferry crossing that he swore never to sail again."
"The smell of the drains was so foul that she nearly boked in the street."
"After the fairground ride, the boy boked all over his new trainers."
In Scotland and Northern Ireland, if someone says they were 'boked', don't reach for the phone to cancel their plans — hand them a sick bowl instead.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of boked
Boked is the past tense of boke, a verb recorded in Scots and Northern English dialect with the senses of vomiting and retching. Its deeper origin is uncertain; lexicographers generally treat it as a dialect word of obscure or possibly imitative origin, related historically to older forms associated with belching and throat-clearing. It remains a living colloquialism in Scotland and Northern Ireland rather than a word absorbed into standard English.
Related word forms
How boked is actually used
Informal and distinctly regional — heard mainly in Scottish and Northern Irish speech. To most English speakers elsewhere it would be unfamiliar or read as a typo for 'booked', so it should be used with that audience in mind. Often used in the phrase 'feel boke' for nausea.
Easily confused with boked
'Booked' means reserved or arranged in advance, while 'boked' is a dialectal term for having vomited.