bo-peep

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   an old name for peekaboo, or an act of appearing suddenly and hiding again

   The children played bo-peep from behind the curtains.

2. 2
   verb

   to play bo-peep or peek out suddenly and withdraw again

   A face bo-peeped from the doorway and vanished.

Recorded from the 1520s as the older name of the game now usually called peekaboo. It combines bo, a variant of the startling cry boo, with peep, 'to look briefly or furtively.' The spelling bopeep is also established.

Topics