bootee

IPA/ˈbuːtiː/
IPA/ˈbuːtiː/

bootee — noun

  • booteesingular
  • booteesplural

1. a soft shoe or thick sock for a baby that covers the foot and ankle.

1.nounC1
Definition

a soft shoe or thick sock for a baby that covers the foot and ankle.

Example

Meera pulled the pink bootees onto the baby's feet before the walk.

pull bootees onto a baby's feet

Kemi's grandmother knitted wool bootees for the new baby in winter.

knit bootees for a new baby

Common collocations
  • pair of bootees
  • wool bootees
  • knitted bootees
  • soft bootees
Synonyms
  • bootie

    the closest alternative spelling and the more usual everyday form in North America

  • slipper

    broader; can refer to soft indoor footwear for adults or children as well

  • sock

    usually thinner and less shaped like a small boot

Grammar Patterns

a pair of bootees

pull bootees on

knit bootees for a baby

Usage Note

Usually refers to soft footwear for babies, often knitted or padded, and is common when people talk about gifts or clothes for very young children. In everyday North American English, bootie is often used for the same item.

Common Mistakes

I bought one bootees for the baby.
I bought a pair of bootees for the baby.
This item is normally worn as a matching pair, so English usually counts the two together.
The baby wore boots to sleep.
The baby wore soft bootees to sleep.
'boots' suggests harder outdoor footwear, while 'bootees' are soft items for a baby's feet.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Bootee is a fairly specific word for a soft item that covers a baby's foot and often the ankle as well. Bootie is the closest alternative and is the form many speakers use more often in everyday English, especially in North America. Slipper is broader because it can refer to soft indoor footwear for adults, children, or babies. Sock usually suggests a thinner knitted item without the shaped boot-like form that a bootee may have. Boot is much wider in meaning and often suggests stronger outdoor footwear. If a gift box contains hand-knitted baby footwear, bootees sounds natural; for adult indoor shoes, slipper is the better choice.

bootie ↗slipper ↗sock ↗boot ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • wool bootees
  • knitted bootees
  • soft bootees

Phrases

  • a pair of bootees
  • pull bootees on

Etymology

English

Bootee was formed in English from boot with a small-form ending also seen in spellings such as bootie. The word came to mean a little soft boot, especially one made for a baby's feet.

First known use

1799

1799, in the meaning defined above