bum

bum

See also: bûm

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bʌm/

• Audio (CA)

  (file)

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʌm

Etymology 1

Attested 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

bum (plural bums)

1. (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.
2. (informal or childish, chiefly Commonwealth) The 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.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:anus

Usage notes

• 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, and bottom are considered to be non-specific terms.

Translations

informal: buttocks or anus

Bulgarian: задник (bg) m (zadnik) Dutch: gat (nl) n, kont (nl) m, reet (nl) m, poep (nl) f (Flemish), achterwerk (nl) n, achterste (nl) n Finnish: peppu (fi), perse (fi), takapuoli (fi), pylly (fi) French: cul (fr) m Greek: ποπός (el) m (popós), πισινός (el) m (pisinós) German: Hintern (de) m Italian: deretano (it), didietro (it) m, culo (it), sedere (it) m Malayalam: ചന്തി (ml) (canti) Polish: pupa (pl) f Portuguese: nalgas (pt), cu (pt), ânus (pt) m, traseiro (pt) m, bunda (pt) f, bumbum (pt) m Romanian: cur (ro) n, fund (ro) n Russian: за́дница (ru) f (zádnica) Scottish Gaelic: màs m, tòn f Spanish: ano (es), trasero (es) Swedish: häck (sv), rumpa (sv), stjärt (sv) c Tamil: குண்டி (ta) (kuṇṭi) Ukrainian: ду́па (dúpa), сра́ка (sráka), зад (zad)

informal: butt(ocks) specifically

Bulgarian: дупе n (dupe) Dutch: billen (nl) f pl, bips (nl) m Finnish: peppu (fi), pakarat (fi) pl, takapuoli (fi) French: fesses (fr) f pl Greek: οπίσθια (el) n pl (opísthia) Italian: glutei (it), chiappe (it) Portuguese: nalgas (pt), bunda (pt) f, nádegas (pt) f pl, bumbum (pt) m Romanian: buci f pl Russian: за́дница (ru) f (zádnica) Scottish Gaelic: màs m, tòn m Spanish: nalgas (es) Swedish: skinkor (sv) c pl Ukrainian: ду́па (dúpa), сра́ка (sráka)

anus specifically

Dutch: anus (nl) m Finnish: perse (fi), anus (fi), perseenreikä French: cul (fr) m, trou du cul (fr) m German: Anus (de) m Italian: ano (it) m Kwak'wala: mengas Portuguese: cu (pt), ânus (pt) m, brioco m, toba (pt) m Romanian: cur (ro) n, anus (ro) n Scottish Gaelic: màs m, tòn f Swedish: anus (sv) n, rövhål (sv) n

Verb

bum (third-person singular simple present bums, present participle bumming, simple past and past participle bummed)

1. (UK, transitive, colloquial) To sodomize; to engage in anal sex.

Interjection

bum

1. (UK) An expression of annoyance.
   • 2010, Jill Mansell, Sheer Mischief:

     Maxine tried hers. 'Oh bum,' she said crossly. 'The sugar isn't sugar. It's salt.'

Derived terms

Terms derived from senses associated with etymology 1

• bare-bum
• beach bum
• builder's bum
• bum bag
• bum boy
• bum bum
• bum burp
• bum calf
• bum cheeks
• bum chum
• bum-clock
• bum crack
• bum deal
• bum fluff
• bumfluff
• bum-fluff
• bum-fluffed
• bum fodder
• bum fuck nowhere
• bum-fuck nowhere
• bum gun
• bum head
• bumhole
• bum roll
• bum-rush
• bum rush
• bum sex
• bums in seats
• bum steer
• bum-sucker
• bum-sucking
• bum wine
• front bum
• head down, bum up
• kick up the bum
• land with one's bum in the butter
• pain in the bum
• saddle bum
• saddle-bum
• ski bum
• squeaky bum time

 

Etymology 2

1864, back-formation from bummer, from German Bummler (“loafer”), from bummeln (“to loaf”).

Noun

bum (plural bums)

1. (US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, colloquial, derogatory) A homeless person, usually a man.

   Synonyms: tramp, vagrant, wanderer, vagabond; see also Thesaurus:vagabond

2. (US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, colloquial, 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

3. (US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, 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”

4. (colloquial) A drinking spree.

   Synonyms: binge, bender

Translations

hobo

Bulgarian: безделник (bg) m (bezdelnik), нехранимайко (bg) m (nehranimajko) Chinese: Mandarin: 瘪三 (zh) (biēsān), 乞丐 (zh) (qǐgài) Dutch: landloper (nl) m, vagebond (nl) m, dakloze (nl) m, zwerver (nl) m Esperanto: vagabondo, trampo, vaganto, vagulo Estonian: hulkur Finnish: hulttio (fi), pummi (fi), renttu (fi) French: vagabond (fr) German: Penner (de) m, Wohnsitzlose Hungarian: csavargó (hu) Italian: vagabondo (it) m, fannullone (it) m, barbone (it) m Japanese: 乞丐 (ja) (きつかい, kitsukai), くだらないやつ (kudaranai yatsu), ろくでなし (rokudenashi) Korean: 걸개(乞丐) (geolgae) Latin: planus m, errō (la) m Navajo: naʼałjidí Polish: bezdomny (pl) m, menel (pl) m (derogatory) Portuguese: sem-teto (pt) m or f Romanian: vagabond (ro) m, boschetar m (slang), aurolac m (slang) Russian: бомж (ru) m (bomž), попроша́йка (ru) m or f (poprošájka), бродя́га (ru) m or f (brodjága) Slovak: povaľač m, bezdomovec m, tulák m Spanish: vagabundo (es) m, vago (es) m Swedish: lodare (sv), lodis (sv), luffare (sv), uteliggare (sv) c Taos: tràmpiʼína Ukrainian: бомж (bomž)

player or racer who performs poorly

French: tocard (fr) m

Verb

bum (third-person singular simple present bums, present participle bumming, simple past and past participle bummed)

1. (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?

2. (intransitive, colloquial) To stay idle and unproductive, like a hobo or vagabond.

   Synonym: loiter

   I think I'll just bum around downtown for awhile until dinner.

3. (transitive, slang, Britain) To wet the end of a marijuana cigarette (spliff).

Descendants

• → French: bummer

Translations

to beg for something

Czech: somrovat impf, vysomrovat pf Dutch: bietsen (nl), aftroggelen (nl) Finnish: pummata (fi) French: taper (fr) German: schnorren (de) Italian: oziare (it), vagabondare Portuguese: implorar (pt) Russian: кля́нчить (ru) (kljánčitʹ)

to stay idle and unproductive

French: glander (fr), glandouiller (fr)

Adjective

bum (comparative bummer, superlative bummest)

1. Of poor quality or highly undesirable.

   bum note

2. Unfair.

   bum deal

3. Injured and without the possibility of full repair, defective.

   Synonym: (UK) duff

   I can't play football anymore on account of my bum knee.

4. Unpleasant or unhappy.

   He had a bum trip on that mescaline.

Quotations

• For quotations using this term, see Citations:bum.

Translations

of poor quality or highly undesirable

Bulgarian: повреден (bg) (povreden), негоден (bg) (negoden) German: mies (de), schlecht (de), miserabel (de), erbärmlich (de), armselig (de) Italian: scadente (it)

unfair

Bulgarian: нечестен (bg) (nečesten) German: unsauber (de), unfair (de), unlauter (de), unredlich (de), unehrlich (de)

defective

German: nachhaltig beschädigt Hungarian: vacak (hu), selejtes (hu)

Derived terms

Terms derived from senses associated with etymology 2

• bum around
• bum bailiff
• bum rap
• bum's rush
• corporate welfare bum
• on the bum
• welfare bum

Etymology 3

Back-formation from bum out.

Verb

bum (third-person singular simple present bums, present participle bumming, simple past and past participle bummed)

1. To depress; to make unhappy.

References

• Douglas Harper (2001–2023), “bum”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

Etymology 4

See boom.

Noun

bum (plural bums)

1. (dated) A humming noise.

Verb

bum (third-person singular simple present bums, present participle bumming, simple past and past participle bummed)

1. (intransitive) To make a murmuring or humming sound.
   • 1722, William Hamilton, The Wallace:

     English men bum there [Stirling] as thick as bees.

Etymology 5

Abbreviations.

Noun

bum (plural bums)

1. (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.

References

1. “bum”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
2. “bum”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
3. Douglas Harper (2001–2023), “bum”, in Online Etymology Dictionary. (which quotes the OED)
4. John Stephen Farmer, William Ernest Henley, Slang and Its Analogues Past and Present: A Dictionary (1890), "bum"
5. Douglas Harper (2001–2023), “bottom”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

Anagrams

• MBU, UMB, umb, umb-

---

Albanian

Etymology

From English boom with orthographic adaptation.

Noun

bum ?

1. (economics) boom

---

Indonesian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈbʊm]
• Hyphenation: bum

Etymology 1

From Dutch slagboom (“boom barrier, boom gate”) or boom (“beam, barrier, tree, pole”), from Middle Dutch bôom, from Old Dutch bōm, from Proto-Germanic *baumaz. Doublet of bom.

Noun

bum (first-person possessive bumku, second-person possessive bummu, third-person possessive bumnya)

1. boom barrier, boom gate
2. (figuratively) customs

Alternative forms

• bom

Synonyms

• bea cukai
• duane
• kastam (Standard Malay)
• pabean

Etymology 2

From English boom, onomatopoeic.

Noun

bum (first-person possessive bumku, second-person possessive bummu, third-person possessive bumnya)

1. (economics, business) boom: a period of prosperity, growth, progress, or high market activity.

Further reading

• “bum” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Language Development and Fostering Agency — Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic Indonesia, 2016.

---

Irish

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

bum m (genitive singular bum, nominative plural bumanna)

1. (sailing) boom

Declension

Declension of bum

Fourth declension

Bare forms Case Singular Plural Nominative bum bumanna Vocative a bhum a bhumanna Genitive bum bumanna Dative bum bumanna

Forms with the definite article Case Singular Plural Nominative an bum na bumanna Genitive an bhum na mbumanna Dative leis an mbum don bhum leis na bumanna

Synonyms

• crann scóide
• bumaile

Mutation

Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Eclipsis
bum	bhum	mbum
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

---

Mizo

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bum/

Verb

bum

1. swindle
2. cheat
3. trick

---

Polish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bum/

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -um
• Syllabification: bum

Interjection

bum

1. boom! (sound of explosion)
2. bang! (any brief, sharp, loud noise)

Further reading

• bum in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• bum in Polish dictionaries at PWN

---

Portuguese

Interjection

bum!

1. boom (sound of explosion)

---

Romanian

Etymology

Onomatopoeic.

Interjection

bum

1. boom

---

Serbo-Croatian

Verb

bum (Cyrillic spelling бум)

1. (Kajkavian) first-person singular future of biti

---

Spanish

Etymology

Onomatopoeic.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbum/ [ˈbũm]
• Rhymes: -um
• Syllabification: bum

Interjection

¡bum!

1. boom (used to suggest the sound of an explosion)
2. boom (used to suggest something happening suddenly and unexpectedly)

See also

• pum
• pop

Further reading

• “bum”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014

---

Transylvanian Saxon

Noun

bum m

1. tree

References

• Siebenbürger Sachsen

---

Umbrian

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Indo-European *gʷṓws (“ox”). Akin to Latin bōs.

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “declension, and clearify the -ow-/-ō-”)

Noun

bum m (irregular)

1. ox
   • early 2^nd century BCE, Iguvine Tablets, table I, side A (photo; facsimile), lines 2–3:

     ² [...] 𐌐𐌓𐌄𐌅𐌄𐌓𐌄𐌔:​𐌕𐌓𐌄𐌐𐌋𐌀𐌍𐌄𐌔:​ ³ 𐌉𐌖𐌅𐌄:​𐌊𐌓𐌀𐌐𐌖𐌅𐌉:​𐌕𐌓𐌄𐌁𐌖𐌚:​𐌚𐌄𐌕𐌖:​ [...]

     preveres treplanes iuve krapuvi tre buf fetu

     In front of the Trebulan gate sacrifice three oxen to Jupiter Grabovius.

Attested forms

Inflection of bum? m
accusative sigular	e.Ig. 𐌁𐌖𐌌 (bum)
ablative sigular	l.Ig. bue
genitive plural	l.Ig. buo
accusative plural	e.Ig. 𐌁𐌖𐌚 (buf) l.Ig. buf

References

• De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “bōs, bovis”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, pages 74–75
• Buck, Carl Darling (1904) A Grammar of Oscan and Umbrian: With a Collection of Inscriptions and a Glossary, page 131
• Ancillotti, Augusto; Cerri, Romolo (2015), “bue”, in Vocabolario dell'umbro delle tavole di Gubbio [Vocabulary of Umbrian and of the Iguvine Tables] (in Italian), page 8

---

Volapük

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bum/

Noun

bum (nominative plural bums)

1. act of building

Declension

declension of bum

	singular	plural
nominative	bum	bums
genitive	buma	bumas
dative	bume	bumes
accusative	bumi	bumis
vocative 1	o bum!	o bums!
predicative 2	bumu	bumus

• ¹ status as a case is disputed
• ² in later, non-classical Volapük only

Derived terms

• bumäd
• bumot

---

Welsh

Pronunciation

• (North Wales) IPA^(key): /bɨ̞m/
• (South Wales) IPA^(key): /bɪm/

Numeral

bum

1. Soft mutation of pum (“five”).

Mutation

Welsh mutation
radical	soft	nasal	aspirate
pum	bum	mhum	phum
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.