From a New York Times article about Marjorie Taylor Green:
She’s the latest descendant in a lineage of Republican women who embrace a boffo radicalism, who delight in making trouble and in causing offense.Boffo ? The word hardly fits. Merriam-Webster : “extremely successful : sensational.” The Oxford English Dictionary: “Of a laugh: uproarious, unrestrained, hearty. Of a joke, act, show, etc.: uproariously or boisterously funny, hilarious.”
I suspect that boffo might have replaced a word an editor deemed less tactful. Perhaps gonzo ? Or bonkers ?
comments: 4
I know it's a cliché but the only time I can remember hearing "boffo" used is with the word "box office."
I was hoping the first OED citation would be from Variety.
Or batshit insane.
That’s clarity itself. :)
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