What does "bum" mean?
The buttocks.
Bum
/bʌm/ adj, intj, noun, verb, slang
adj, intj, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The buttocks.
- Grammar: bum is listed as adj, intj, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: buttocks, hindquarters, hobo, idler.
- Useful contrasts: anterior, buy, cheer.
- Usage evidence: Of course you can trust me. Have I ever given you a bum steer before?
How to use "bum"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "bum" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "bum" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "bum" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "bum" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "bum" is acting as adj, intj, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "buttocks" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "bum", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The buttocks. Commonwealth, childish, informal
"Okay, everyone sit on your bum and try and touch your toes."
- 2 A homeless person, usually a man. colloquial, derogatory, sometimes
- 3 A humming noise. dated
- 4 A bumbailiff. obsolete
"About her Chariot, and behind, / Were Sergeants, Bums of every kind, / Tip-staffs, and all those Officers, / That squeeze a Living out of Tears."
- 5 the fleshy part of the human body that you sit on wordnet
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 The anus. Commonwealth, childish, informal
"John said that when he was little he stuck his finger in his bum and tasted his poopies and it was good."
- 7 A lazy, incompetent, or annoying person, usually a man. colloquial, derogatory, sometimes
"Fred is becoming a bum—he’s not even bothering to work more than once a month."
- 8 person who does no work wordnet
- 9 An act of anal sex. East-Midlands, slang, vulgar
"Go for a bum"
- 10 A player or racer who often performs poorly. colloquial
"Trade him to another team, he’s a bum!"
- 11 a person who is deemed to be despicable or contemptible wordnet
- 12 A drinking spree. colloquial
- 13 a vagrant wordnet
Verb
- 1 To sodomize; to engage in anal sex. Ireland, UK, colloquial, transitive
"Your bars are fake and my bars are real; / Is it true you got bummed on a field?"
- 2 To ask someone to give one (something) for free; to beg for something. colloquial, transitive
"Can I bum a cigarette off you?"
- 3 To depress; to make unhappy.
- 4 To make a murmuring or humming sound. intransitive
"English men bum there [Stirling] as thick as bees."
- 5 ask for and get free; be a parasite wordnet
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 To stay idle and unproductive, like a hobo or vagabond. colloquial, intransitive
"I think I’ll just bum around downtown for a while until dinner."
- 7 be lazy or idle wordnet
- 8 To wet the end of a marijuana cigarette (spliff). British, slang, transitive
Adjective
- 1 Of poor quality or highly undesirable. slang
"bum note"
- 2 Unfair. slang
"a bum deal"
- 3 Injured and without the possibility of full repair, defective. slang
"I can’t play football anymore on account of my bum knee."
- 4 Unpleasant or unhappy. slang
"He had a bum trip on that mescaline."
Adjective
- 1 of very poor quality; flimsy wordnet
Intj
- 1 An expression of annoyance. Ireland, UK, childish, euphemistic
"(more vulgar)"
Example
"Of course you can trust me. Have I ever given you a bum steer before?"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "bum"?
Common synonyms include: buttocks, hindquarters, hobo, idler, layabout, loafer.
How do you use "bum" in a sentence?
Of course you can trust me. Have I ever given you a bum steer before?
How do you pronounce "bum"?
Pronounced /bʌm/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
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”).
Etymology 2
1864, back-formation from bummer, from German Bummler (“loafer”), from bummeln (“to loaf”).
Etymology 3
Back-formation from bum out.
Etymology 4
See boom.
Etymology 5
Abbreviation.