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Original · left

Boss (employer)

A person in charge of a worker or organization.

First in use: the 1600s
Duplicate · right

Boss (video games)

A powerful enemy at the end of a game level.

First in use: the 1970s

Boss / Boss (employer) / Boss (video games)

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Duplicate share · 12 mo—
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Your manager vs. the end-of-level fight.

Which meaning of Boss is the original, and which one is the duplicate riding on its name? Boss (employer) came first (the 1600s). Boss (video games) arrived in the 1970s. The data below shows which one owns the word now.

Wikipedia pageviews since 2015

Boss (employer)Boss (video games)
English Wikipedia pageviews since July 2015 load here.

Duplicate's share of attention

Green line = duplicate's % · above 60 it owns the word · below 40 the original does

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The case for each meaning

Sourced definitions, usage stats and quotes

Original · the 1600s

Boss (employer)

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Duplicate · the 1970s

Boss (video games)

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More duplicated terms

Internet & gaming culture