bum
English
editPronunciation
editEtymology 1
editAttested since the 1300s,[1][2][3] as Middle English bom[1] (found in John Trevisa's 1387 Translation of the 'Polychronicon' of Ranulph Higden, "his bom is oute"), of uncertain origin.[1] Sometimes suggested to be a shortening of botme, botom, bottum (“bottom”), but this is contradicted by the fact that bottom is not attested in reference to the buttocks until the late 1700s.[4][5] Suggested by some old[4] and modern references to be onomatopoeic.[3]
Compare also Old Irish, Scottish Gaelic bun (“base, bottom”).
Noun
editbum (plural bums)
- (informal or childish, chiefly Commonwealth) The buttocks.
- Synonyms: see Thesaurus:buttocks
- Okay, everyone sit on your bum and try and touch your toes.
- For quotations using this term, see Citations:bum.
- (informal or childish, chiefly Commonwealth) The anus.
- Synonyms: see Thesaurus:anus
- 2013, Steven L. Ablon, Daniel P. Brown, Edward J. Khantzian, Human Feelings: Explorations in Affect Development and Meaning, page 132:
- John said that when he was little he stuck his finger in his bum and tasted his poopies and it was good.
- 2015, Jonathan Nicholas, Who'd be a copper?: Thirty years a frontline British cop:
- What could the man possibly be hiding up his bum anyway?
- 2016, Lisa Keenan-Lindsay, Cheryl Sams, Constance L. O'Connor, Maternal Child Nursing Care in Canada, page 118:
- Do you have intercourse (i.e., Do you penetrate your partner in the vagina or anus [bum]? Or does your partner penetrate your vagina or anus [bum])?
- 2017, Jean Renvoize, Innocence Destroyed: A Study of Child Sexual Abuse:
- […] and said Daddy had put a finger up her bum.
Usage notes
edit- While bum is most common in the UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand, in Canada, bum is mainly used when speaking to young children, as in Everyone please sit on your bum and we’ll read a story. In the United States, bum is not often used in this sense (though this may vary from dialect to dialect) except in conscious imitation of British English. The term butt is the most common term in North America except in professional contexts such as medical, legal, and scientific where buttocks is generally used or gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, etc. for the muscles specifically. Glutes is often used in sports medicine and bodybuilding. Ass (originally a dialectal variant of arse) is considered vulgar in North America, whereas backside, behind, bottom and rear are considered to be non-specific terms.
Translations
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Verb
editbum (third-person singular simple present bums, present participle bumming, simple past and past participle bummed)
- (UK, Ireland, transitive, colloquial) To sodomize; to engage in anal sex.
- 2016 December 3, “Soph Aspin Send”, performed by Millie B:
- Your bars are fake and my bars are real; / Is it true you got bummed on a field?
Interjection
editbum
- (UK, Ireland, childish, euphemistic) An expression of annoyance.
- Synonym: arse (more vulgar)
- 2010, Jill Mansell, Sheer Mischief[1]:
- Maxine tried hers. ‘Oh bum,’ she said crossly. ‘The sugar isn’t sugar. It’s salt.’
Derived terms
edit- bare-bum
- belfie
- builder's bum
- bum bag
- bum boy
- bumboy
- bum-breathing
- bum bum
- bum-bum
- bum burp
- bum cheeks
- bum chum
- bum-clock
- bum crack
- bum fluff
- bumfluff
- bum-fluff
- bum-fluffed
- bum fodder
- bumfodder
- bumfoolery
- bumfreezer
- bumfuck
- Bumfuck
- bum-fuck nowhere
- bum fuck nowhere
- bum gun
- bum head
- bumhole
- bumload
- bumlord
- bum roll
- bum sex
- bumshoving
- bum shuffle
- bums in seats
- bum-squabble
- bum squabble
- bum squabbled
- bumster
- bumsters
- bum-sucker
- bumsucker
- bum-sucking
- bumtastic
- bumwad
- bum wine
- front bum
- head down, bum up
- kick up the bum
- land with one's bum in the butter
- pain in the bum
- shitbum
- squeaky bum time
- underbum
Etymology 2
edit1864, back-formation from bummer, from German Bummler (“loafer”), from bummeln (“to loaf”).
Noun
editbum (plural bums)
- (colloquial, sometimes derogatory) A homeless person, usually a man.
- Synonyms: tramp, vagrant, wanderer, vagabond; see also Thesaurus:vagabond
- (colloquial, sometimes derogatory) A lazy, incompetent, or annoying person, usually a man.
- Synonyms: loafer, bumpkin, footler; see also Thesaurus:idler
- Fred is becoming a bum—he’s not even bothering to work more than once a month.
- That mechanic’s a bum—he couldn’t fix a yo-yo.
- That guy keeps interrupting the concert. Throw the bum out!
- 1987, “Fairytale of New York”, performed by The Pogues:
- You’re a bum / You’re a punk / You’re an old slut on junk / Lying there almost dead on a drip in that bed
- 1988, Michael Weikath (lyrics and music), “Keeper of the Seven Keys”, in Keeper of the Seven Keys: Part II, performed by Helloween:
- Man who do you just think you are? / A silly bum with seven stars
- (colloquial, sports) A player or racer who often performs poorly.
- Trade him to another team, he’s a bum!
- 2001, Laura Hillenbrand, Seabiscuit: An American Legend:
- Seabiscuit, wrote another reporter, “was a hero in California and a pretty fair sort of horse in the midwest. In the east, however, he was just a ‘bumʼ”
- (colloquial) A drinking spree.
Translations
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Verb
editbum (third-person singular simple present bums, present participle bumming, simple past and past participle bummed)
- (transitive, colloquial) To ask someone to give one (something) for free; to beg for something.
- Synonyms: (British) cadge; see also Thesaurus:scrounge
- Can I bum a cigarette off you?
- (intransitive, colloquial) To stay idle and unproductive, like a hobo or vagabond.
- Synonym: loiter
- I think I’ll just bum around downtown for a while until dinner.
- (transitive, slang, British) To wet the end of a marijuana cigarette (spliff).
Descendants
editTranslations
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Adjective
editbum (comparative bummer, superlative bummest)
- (slang) Of poor quality or highly undesirable.
- bum note
- (slang) Unfair.
- a bum deal
- (slang) Injured and without the possibility of full repair, defective.
- Synonym: (UK) duff
- I can’t play football anymore on account of my bum knee.
- (slang) Unpleasant or unhappy.
- He had a bum trip on that mescaline.
Quotations
edit- For quotations using this term, see Citations:bum.
Derived terms
editTranslations
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Derived terms
editEtymology 3
editBack-formation from bum out.
Verb
editbum (third-person singular simple present bums, present participle bumming, simple past and past participle bummed)
- To depress; to make unhappy.
Usage notes
editThis expression is typically found in the passive voice or with the subject it. Thus one might use sentences such as
But one would not normally say
References
edit- Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “bum”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
Etymology 4
editSee boom.
Noun
editbum (plural bums)
Verb
editbum (third-person singular simple present bums, present participle bumming, simple past and past participle bummed)
- (intransitive) To make a murmuring or humming sound.
- 1722, William Hamilton, The Wallace:
- English men bum there [Stirling] as thick as bees.
Derived terms
editEtymology 5
editAbbreviation.
Noun
editbum (plural bums)
- (obsolete) A bumbailiff.
- 1705, Bernard Mandeville, The Fable of the Bees:
- About her Chariot, and behind, / Were Sergeants, Bums of every kind, / Tip-staffs, and all those Officers, / That squeeze a Living out of Tears.
Derived terms
editReferences
edit- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 “bum”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
- ^ “bum”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “bum”, in Online Etymology Dictionary. (which quotes the OED)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 John Stephen Farmer, William Ernest Henley, Slang and Its Analogues Past and Present: A Dictionary (1890), "bum"
- ^ Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “bottom”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
Anagrams
editAlbanian
editEtymology
editFrom English boom with orthographic adaptation.
Noun
editbum
Indonesian
editPronunciation
edit- (Standard Indonesian) IPA(key): /ˈbum/ [ˈbum]
- Rhymes: -um
- Syllabification: bum
Etymology 1
editFrom Dutch slagboom (“boom barrier, boom gate”) or boom (“beam, barrier, tree, pole”). Doublet of bom.
Alternative forms
editNoun
editbum (plural bum-bum)
- boom barrier, boom gate (a bar or pole that can be lowered or raised to controll the traffic)
- (figurative) customs (government agency that handles taxes of imported goods)
Etymology 2
editFrom English boom, a onomatopoeic word.
Noun
editbum
Further reading
edit- “bum” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.
Irish
editEtymology
edit(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Noun
editbum m (genitive singular bum, nominative plural bumanna)
Declension
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Synonyms
editMutation
editradical | lenition | eclipsis |
---|---|---|
bum | bhum | mbum |
Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Modern Irish.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.
Mizo
editPronunciation
editVerb
editbum
Polish
editPronunciation
editEtymology 1
editInterjection
editbum
Etymology 2
editNoun
editbum m inan
- Alternative form of bom
Declension
editEtymology 3
editNoun
editbum m inan
- Alternative form of boom
Declension
editFurther reading
editPortuguese
editPronunciation
edit
- Rhymes: -ũ
- Hyphenation: bum
Etymology 1
editInterjection
editbum!
- boom (sound of explosion)
Etymology 2
editNoun
editbum m (plural buns)
- boom (a rapid expansion or increase)
- 2023, Djalma do Nascimento Sousa, chapter 145, in Memórias do Sul do Maranhão, Maranhão, published 2023, page VIII:
- O "bum" do gado só veio com a crise do arroz no final de 80 para início de 90;
- The cattle boom only came with the rice crisis in the late 80s and early 90s;
Romanian
editEtymology
editInterjection
editbum
Serbo-Croatian
editVerb
editbum (Cyrillic spelling бум)
Spanish
editEtymology
editPronunciation
editInterjection
edit¡bum!
- boom (used to suggest the sound of an explosion)
- boom (used to suggest something happening suddenly and unexpectedly)
See also
editFurther reading
edit- “bum”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10
Transylvanian Saxon
editNoun
editbum m
References
editUmbrian
editRomanization
editbum
- Romanization of 𐌁𐌖𐌌
Volapük
editPronunciation
editNoun
editbum (nominative plural bums)
- act of building
Declension
editDerived terms
editWelsh
editPronunciation
edit- (North Wales) IPA(key): /bɨ̞m/
- (South Wales) IPA(key): /bɪm/
Numeral
editbum
- Soft mutation of pum (“five”).
Mutation
edit- English 1-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English terms with audio pronunciation
- Rhymes:English/ʌm
- Rhymes:English/ʌm/1 syllable
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English onomatopoeias
- English lemmas
- English nouns
- English countable nouns
- English informal terms
- English childish terms
- Commonwealth English
- English terms with usage examples
- English terms with quotations
- English verbs
- British English
- Irish English
- English transitive verbs
- English colloquialisms
- English interjections
- English euphemisms
- English back-formations
- English terms derived from German
- English derogatory terms
- en:Sports
- English intransitive verbs
- English slang
- English adjectives
- English terms with collocations
- English dated terms
- English terms with obsolete senses
- en:Buttocks
- en:People
- English three-letter words
- Albanian terms borrowed from English
- Albanian terms derived from English
- Albanian lemmas
- Albanian nouns
- sq:Economics
- Indonesian 1-syllable words
- Indonesian terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:Indonesian/um
- Rhymes:Indonesian/um/1 syllable
- Indonesian terms derived from Middle Dutch
- Indonesian terms derived from Old Dutch
- Indonesian terms derived from Proto-Germanic
- Indonesian terms borrowed from Dutch
- Indonesian terms derived from Dutch
- Indonesian doublets
- Indonesian lemmas
- Indonesian nouns
- Indonesian terms borrowed from English
- Indonesian terms derived from English
- Indonesian onomatopoeias
- Indonesian uncountable nouns
- id:Economics
- id:Business
- Irish lemmas
- Irish nouns
- Irish masculine nouns
- ga:Sailing
- Irish fourth-declension nouns
- Mizo terms with IPA pronunciation
- Mizo lemmas
- Mizo verbs
- Polish 1-syllable words
- Polish terms with IPA pronunciation
- Polish terms with audio pronunciation
- Rhymes:Polish/um
- Rhymes:Polish/um/1 syllable
- Polish terms with homophones
- Polish onomatopoeias
- Polish lemmas
- Polish interjections
- Polish terms derived from Middle Dutch
- Polish terms derived from Old Dutch
- Polish terms derived from Proto-West Germanic
- Polish terms derived from Proto-Germanic
- Polish terms borrowed from Dutch
- Polish terms derived from Dutch
- Polish nouns
- Polish masculine nouns
- Polish inanimate nouns
- Polish terms borrowed from English
- Polish terms derived from English
- pl:Business
- pl:Economics
- pl:Gymnastics
- pl:Sailing
- pl:Ship parts
- Portuguese 1-syllable words
- Portuguese terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:Portuguese/ũ
- Rhymes:Portuguese/ũ/1 syllable
- Portuguese onomatopoeias
- Portuguese lemmas
- Portuguese interjections
- Portuguese terms derived from English
- Portuguese nouns
- Portuguese countable nouns
- Portuguese masculine nouns
- Portuguese terms with quotations
- Romanian onomatopoeias
- Romanian lemmas
- Romanian interjections
- Serbo-Croatian non-lemma forms
- Serbo-Croatian verb forms
- Kajkavian Serbo-Croatian
- Spanish onomatopoeias
- Spanish 1-syllable words
- Spanish terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:Spanish/um
- Rhymes:Spanish/um/1 syllable
- Spanish lemmas
- Spanish interjections
- Transylvanian Saxon lemmas
- Transylvanian Saxon nouns
- Transylvanian Saxon masculine nouns
- gmw-tsx:Trees
- Umbrian non-lemma forms
- Umbrian romanizations
- Volapük terms with IPA pronunciation
- Volapük lemmas
- Volapük nouns
- Welsh terms with IPA pronunciation
- Welsh non-lemma forms
- Welsh mutated numerals
- Welsh soft-mutation forms