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Booby prize facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Discoloured wooden spoon
A wooden spoon is a common booby prize in sporting events

A booby prize is a joke prize usually given in recognition of a terrible performance or last-place finish. A person who finishes last, for example, may receive a booby prize such as a worthless coin. Booby prizes are sometimes jokingly coveted as an object of pride.

Booby prizes may also be given as consolation prizes to all non-placing participants of a competition.

This type of prize is common in the CBS game show, Let's Make a Deal which are known as "zonks."

Origin

The word "boob" stems from the Spanish bobo meaning silly, which in turn came from the Latin balbus meaning stammering; the word booby to mean dunce appeared in 1599.

Booby prize literally means "idiot's prize". The OED dates this usage to 1893. Booby trap and "booby hatch" are related terms.

See also

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Booby prize Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.