bum.
The buttocks.
Meaning & usage
The buttocks.
Okay, everyone sit on your bum and try and touch your toes.
The anus.
An act of anal sex.
Go for a bum
Where this word comes from
Attested since the 1300s, as Middle English bom (found in John Trevisa's 1387 Translation of the 'Polychronicon' of Ranulph Higden, "his bom is oute"), of uncertain origin. 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. Suggested by some old and modern references to be onomatopoeic. Compare also Old Irish, Scottish Gaelic bun (“base, bottom”). The anal sex senses (noun and verb), as well as the adjective (esp. the first) sense, are expletive-avoiding (i.e. Bowdlerized) shortenings of bumfuck.
To sodomize; to engage in anal sex.
Where this word comes from
Attested since the 1300s, as Middle English bom (found in John Trevisa's 1387 Translation of the 'Polychronicon' of Ranulph Higden, "his bom is oute"), of uncertain origin. 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. Suggested by some old and modern references to be onomatopoeic. Compare also Old Irish, Scottish Gaelic bun (“base, bottom”). The anal sex senses (noun and verb), as well as the adjective (esp. the first) sense, are expletive-avoiding (i.e. Bowdlerized) shortenings of bumfuck.
An expression of annoyance.
Where this word comes from
Attested since the 1300s, as Middle English bom (found in John Trevisa's 1387 Translation of the 'Polychronicon' of Ranulph Higden, "his bom is oute"), of uncertain origin. 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. Suggested by some old and modern references to be onomatopoeic. Compare also Old Irish, Scottish Gaelic bun (“base, bottom”). The anal sex senses (noun and verb), as well as the adjective (esp. the first) sense, are expletive-avoiding (i.e. Bowdlerized) shortenings of bumfuck.
A homeless person, usually a man.
A lazy, incompetent, or annoying person, usually a man.
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.
A player or racer who often performs poorly.
Trade him to another team, he’s a bum!
A drinking spree.
Where this word comes from
1864, back-formation from bummer, from German Bummler (“loafer”), from bummeln (“to loaf”).
[with off or (nonstandard) off of] To ask someone to give one (something) for free; to beg for something.
Can I bum a cigarette off you?
To stay idle and unproductive, like a hobo or vagabond.
I think I’ll just bum around downtown for a while until dinner.
To wet the end of a marijuana cigarette (spliff).
Where this word comes from
1864, back-formation from bummer, from German Bummler (“loafer”), from bummeln (“to loaf”).
Of poor quality or highly undesirable.
What kind of bum note was that??
The defensive line made a bum rush on the quarterback.
Unfair.
The union reps gave us a bum deal!
Injured and without the possibility of full repair, defective.
I can’t play football anymore on account of my bum knee.
Unpleasant or unhappy.
He had a bum trip on that mescaline.
Where this word comes from
1864, back-formation from bummer, from German Bummler (“loafer”), from bummeln (“to loaf”).
To depress; to make unhappy.
Where this word comes from
Back-formation from bum out.
A humming noise.
Where this word comes from
See boom.
To make a murmuring or humming sound.
Where this word comes from
See boom.
A bumbailiff.
Where this word comes from
Abbreviation.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.