boba

plural bobas

1. countableuncountableSynonym of tapioca pearl.

   She settled on the Chai Frappé Burst, a frozen, blended concoction with whipped cream, boba and cinnamon sugar sprinkles.

   2024 September 16, Priya Krishna, “The Customized Drink Is Out of Control”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 03 Oct 2024

   Synonyms: tapioca pearl

2. abbreviationcountableellipsisuncountableEllipsis of boba tea.

   “I was shocked,” said Leanne Yuen, a longtime boba drinker and a student at the University of California, Irvine. “What am I going to do now?”

   2021 April 16, Kellen Browning, “Another Unlikely Pandemic Shortage: Boba Tea”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 30 Apr 2021

   1 more example

   Taiwanese tea houses invented boba in the 1980s, combining tea, milk, sweetener and ice with tapioca pearls prized for their springy “QQ” texture.

   2026 August 15, Irene Adeline Milanez, “We tasted boba from some of the Bay Area’s most popular chains. Here’s our No. 1”, in San Francisco Chronicle, archived from the original on 16 Aug 2026

3. colloquialcountableslanguncountableA breast, especially that of an adult or adolescent female human.