buckaroo

buck·a·roo
B3U1C3K5A1R1O1O1
UK/ˌbʌkəˈɹuː/US/ˌbʌkəˈɹu/

noun

A cowboy; specifically, a working cowboy who generally does not participate in rodeos.

“Many cowboy poets have a buckaroo look and feel about them.”

Similar
buckarooniesmackeroobuckvaquerobuckeroo
OriginSpanish vaquero →
UncommonScrabble 16
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Meanings

buckaroo1

nounbuckaroo (plural buckaroos)

plural buckaroos · alternative buckayro · alternative buckeroo

  1. USalsoattributiveA cowboy; specifically, a working cowboy who generally does not participate in rodeos.

    No thanks, cowboy. If I was to let every rodeo hand I pulled a bull off of buy me liquor, I'd have been an alcoholic long ago. Pullin' bulls off of you buckaroos is just my job. So save your money for your next entry fee, cowboy.

    2005 September 2, Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana, 00:51:25 from the start, in Brokeback Mountain, Universal City, Calif.: Focus Features, →OCLC
  2. USbroadlyOne who adopts a distinctive style of cowboy attire and heritage.

    Many cowboy poets have a buckaroo look and feel about them.

  3. USbroadlyA style of cowboy boot with a high heel tapered at the back.
  4. USWesternfigurativelyA headstrong, reckless person; a hothead.

    Don’t run in looking for a fight like some kind of buckaroo.

buckaroo2

nounbuckaroo (plural buckaroos)

plural buckaroos

  1. USslangSynonym of buck (“a dollar”).

    That’ll be twenty buckaroos, buddy.

    2 more examples

    I've got five buckeroos on this one, Sarge. Is there such a thing as an enlisted man in the Navy wearing an Army uniform? I say no!

    1944 March 18, Liberty

    “Thirty-five buckeroos per weekly?” I ask. “Well, that is thirty more than I used to get when I was a young man

    1947 June 28, Super Sports

    Synonyms: buckaroonie, smackeroo, buck

Buckaroo3

proper noun
  1. A locality in the Mid-Western council area, eastern New South Wales, Australia.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounSynonym of buck (“a dollar”).

Similar
buckarooniesmackeroobuck

More synonyms by meaning

nounlocal names for a cowboy (‘vaquero’ is used especially in southwestern and central Texas and ‘buckaroo’ is used especially in California)

Similar
vaquerobuckeroo
Broader
cowpuncherpunchercowpoke
Also see
buckvaquero

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

buckaroo · noun

  1. Spanishvaquero“cowboy”
  2. Englishbuckaroo

Modified from Spanish vaquero (“cowboy”), with the spelling influenced by buck (“(noun) male antelope, deer, etc.; adventurous or high-spirited young man; (verb) of a horse, etc.: to leap upward arching its back, coming down with head low and forelegs stiff, forcefully kicking its hind legs upward”). Doublet of vaquero. cognates * Early Medieval Latin vaccārius (“cowherd”) * French vacher * Late Latin baccalārius (“landless serf; cowherd (?)”) (Merovingian)

More words from Spanish

Full word history & related roots →

buckaroo · noun

Probably a fanciful elaboration of buck, influenced by buckaroo (etymology 1).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Finnish buckaroo, buckaroo-saapas
  • buckarooone who adopts a distinctive style of cowboy attire and heritage
  • buckaroo-saapasstyle of cowboy boot with a high heel tapered at the back

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with buckaroo

younewdowhoviewtwothroughreviewutooqfewbluefaqduetruecontinuegnuquesushoeCPUvenuePeru
All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

buckaroo. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/buckaroo

MLA

“buckaroo.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/buckaroo. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “buckaroo,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/buckaroo.

Source: buckaroo on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.