Bovver boots means: Stout lace-up boots, especially Dr. Martens, perceived to be worn for the purpose of kicking people in fights, and popular with skinheads or other troublemakers out looking for bovver.. It is informal slang, fine in casual speech but not suited to formal contexts. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than risky behaviour.
bovver boots
(1970s, _, British, _, slang) Stout lace-up boots, especially Dr.
Definitions
UK
#1·Apr 26, 2026UK
(1970s, _, British, _, slang) Stout lace-up boots, especially Dr. Martens, perceived to be worn for the purpose of kicking people in fights, and popular with skinheads or other troublemakers out looking for bovver.
Their byword is Aggro (Aggravation) and their crucial enemies are hippies, homosexuals and Pakis (Pakistanis or Indians). When they catch one, they use their shaven skulls for butting, their Bovverboots for caving in ribs.
Origin: From trouble + boots. Origin information sourced from Wiktionary contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0).
For parents
Bovver boots means: Stout lace-up boots, especially Dr. Martens, perceived to be worn for the purpose of kicking people in fights, and popular with skinheads or other troublemakers out looking for bovver.. It is informal slang, fine in casual speech but not suited to formal contexts. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than risky behaviour.
For ESL learners
bovver boots means: Stout lace-up boots, especially Dr. Martens, perceived to be worn for the purpose of kicking people in fights, and popular with skinheads or other troublemakers out looking for. Register: very informal, slang. Suitable only for casual conversation, chat and social media. Do not use in business, academic or news writing. A common learner mistake is using the word in a register it does not fit, or assuming a single global meaning; native speakers immediately notice when slang appears in formal contexts, so always check the surrounding register before producing it yourself.
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For specific readers
Why is this section here?
Slang is read by different audiences for very different reasons. The For parents view re-explains the term in plain, non-judgemental language so a caregiver can understand what their child means without needing the surrounding subculture. The For English learners view focuses on register (when it's safe to use), formal alternatives, and common mistakes — what a textbook won't teach you.
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UK
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🇬🇧About British & Irish slang slang
UK and Irish slang — Cockney, Scouse, Geordie, Yorkshire, Glaswegian, Brummie, Welsh, West Country, plus Irish English. Centuries of regional dialects feeding into modern British and Irish street talk.
See all British & Irish slang slang on Slangora.
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Other words near "bovver boots" (B)
Bourbon CountyBourbonishbousing kenbovine leukaemiabovverbovver birdbovver boybovveredbovver girlbowbearerbowcatbow-core
Browse all slang words starting with B.
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Semantically related
- bovver72%
(British, slang) Violence, especially that associated with youth gangs.
- boot boy72%
(1970s, _, British, _, slang) One of a gang of violent hooligans who usually wear short-cropped hair and bovver boots.
- bovver boy70%
(UK) A hooligan who creates bother (trouble), specifically a member of a skinhead gang.
- bovver girl67%
(UK, slang) The female counterpart of a bovver boy.
- boots65%
(drag slang) Used as an intensifier: very, to a great degree; exceptionally.