peekaboo
/piːkəˈbuː
/(also peek-a-boo)
noun [mass noun]
A game played with a young child, which involves hiding and suddenly reappearing, saying ‘peekaboo’.I would stay up late at night watching movies with the 5th graders, chase around the toddlers, and play peekaboo with the infants....
- Is there anything better than playing peekaboo with a baby?
- Laughing and playing peekaboo on the settee with his mother, Sidney pretends to be shy but then turns on a radiant smile for the camera.
adjective [attributive]
1(Of a garment) made of transparent fabric or having a pattern of small holes: a black lace peekaboo dress...
- For a casual night out for the society girl-on-the-go, his red mohair plaid strapless dress with peek-a-boo velvet bow and mini pouf hem detailing of pleated lace and tulle sets the right tone for the evening.
- He tapped his nose and said, ‘Look after him’ to the grey girl with peek-a-boo underwear.
- Fragonard's famously teasy painting of The Swing is re-created with the addition of a tribal peekaboo dress.
1.1(Of a hairstyle) concealing one eye with a fringe or wave.Many Cancers love peek-a-boo hairstyles that flow and move like a silken drape of hair....
- The short peekaboo has softened her look, but you wonder how it was ever perceived as hard in the first place.
Origin
Late 16th century: from peek + boo1.