Boston Tea Party

American

noun

American History.

a raid on three British ships in Boston Harbor (December 16, 1773) in which Boston colonists, disguised as Indians, threw the contents of several hundred chests of tea into the harbor as a protest against British taxes on tea and against the monopoly granted the East India Company.

Boston Tea Party British

noun

history a raid in 1773 made by citizens of Boston (disguised as Indians) on three British ships in the harbour as a protest against taxes on tea and the monopoly given to the East India Company. The contents of several hundred chests of tea were dumped into the harbour

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Boston Tea Party Cultural

An act of defiance toward the British government by American colonists; it took place in 1773, before the Revolutionary War. The government in London had given a British company the right to sell tea directly to the colonies, thereby undercutting American merchants. A group of colonists found a ship in the harbor of Boston that was loaded with the company's tea. They dressed as Native Americans, boarded the ship, and threw hundreds of chests of tea overboard. The British government then tried to punish the colonists by closing the port of Boston, but this move only intensified American resistance to the rule of the king.

Etymology

Origin of Boston Tea Party

An Americanism dating back to 1825–35

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

I knew that a few black men had participated in the Boston Tea Party, but even so, the last thing I needed right now was to stand out.

From Literature

Meanwhile, Isaac wants to set the record straight that “I was never at the Boston Tea Party. I was in Boston at a tea party, but it was at my Aunt Geraldine’s house.”

From Los Angeles Times

The most potent of American history’s protests — from the Boston Tea Party in 1773 on down — resonated far beyond their eras and, with their enduring notoriety, succeeded.

From Seattle Times

Rob Lowe fronted a docudrama series on the Boston Tea Party.

From Los Angeles Times

The group takes its name from the Green Dragon Tavern, a Boston pub where organisers planned the so-called Boston Tea Party in 1773.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023