bum
1 Americannoun
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a person who avoids work and sponges on others; loafer; idler.
-
a tramp, hobo, or derelict.
-
Informal. an enthusiast of a specific sport or recreational activity, especially one who gives it priority over work, family life, etc..
a ski bum; a tennis bum.
-
Informal. an incompetent person.
-
a drunken orgy; debauch.
verb (used with object)
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bums,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bummed,
past participle, past
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bumming
present participle
-
Informal. to borrow without expectation of returning; get for nothing; cadge.
He's always bumming cigarettes from me.
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Slang. to ruin or spoil.
The weather bummed our whole weekend.
verb (used without object)
-
bums,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bummed,
past participle, past
-
bumming
present participle
-
to sponge on others for a living; lead an idle or dissolute life.
-
to live as a hobo.
adjective
-
Slang. of poor, wretched, or miserable quality; unsatisfactory.
I figured $300 was a bum deal for a minor repair, but I paid it anyway.
-
Slang. fraudulent or fake.
He was accused of issuing a bum check for $2920.
-
Slang. disappointing; unpleasant.
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Slang. erroneous or ill-advised; misleading.
I think the gauge is giving me a bum readout.
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Slang. physically disabled, impaired, or injured.
a bum leg.
verb phrase
idioms
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on the bum,
-
living or traveling as or in a manner suggesting that of a hobo or tramp.
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in a state of disrepair or disorder.
The oven is on the bum again.
-
-
bum (someone) out, to disappoint, upset, or annoy.
It really bummed me out that she could have helped and didn't.
noun
noun
-
a disreputable loafer or idler
-
a tramp; hobo
-
an irresponsible, unpleasant, or mean person
-
a person who spends a great deal of time on a specified sport
baseball bum
-
-
living as a loafer or vagrant
-
out of repair; broken
-
verb
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(tr) to get by begging; cadge
to bum a lift
-
to live by begging or as a vagrant or loafer
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to spend time to no good purpose; loaf; idle
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slang to disappoint, annoy, or upset someone
adjective
-
(prenominal) of poor quality; useless
-
wrong or inappropriate
a bum note
noun
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
bumsimple
-
bumssimple
-
have bummedperfect
-
has bummedperfect
-
am bummingprogressive
-
are bummingprogressive
-
is bummingprogressive
-
have been bummingperfect progressive
-
has been bummingperfect progressive
Past
-
bummedsimple
-
had bummedperfect
-
was bummingprogressive
-
were bummingprogressive
-
had been bummingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bum1
An Americanism first recorded in 1860–65; perhaps a shortening of or back formation from bummer 1; adjective senses of unclear relation to sense “loafer” and perhaps of distinct origin
Origin of bum2
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English bom; of uncertain origin
Explanation
Your bum is your bottom. This word can also be used to refer to a vagrant, although it's generally considered offensive or insensitive. Bum is a name sometimes given to a beggar or vagrant: someone who tries to bum change from you. This word can also be used as a general insult, as in "The Yankees are bums!" (if you're a Red Sox fan) or "The Red Sox are bums!" (if you're a Yankees fan). A false accusation is a bum rap. As a verb, bum is a term for lazing around, as in, "I didn't have any homework this afternoon, so I just bummed around and played video games."
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.
See Examples For:
“My two-engine plane was out at Burbank, waiting, so that if I got a bum rap, I’d get out there, hop in, and leave America and my screen career forever.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
When he substitutes a pitcher or a hitter and it works out, Dave is a hero, and when it doesn’t work out, Dave is a bum.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 4, 2026
If he’s still standing at the end, even if Creed has busted his head open, “I’m gonna know for the first time in my life that I weren’t just another bum from the neighborhood.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
If Leeds lose this, then it is squeaky bum time for them with games to come against Tottenham and West Ham, but they won't mess up.
From BBC ● Apr. 30, 2026
Helen has a bum foot, which Ted, in explaining her absence one day, blames on the cheap, ill-fitting shoes that, he implies, she perversely chooses to wear.
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
Pondering the potential heat death of humanity is a bummer of a way to start the week, I know.
From Slate ● Sep. 14, 2026
And an absolute bummer for me and anyone else who really craved some Saturday night Schadenfreude.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
Presumably a bummer for Wagler, he and Leonard might not be teammates in L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
Well, Carney’s made a movie about darkness and it’s a total bummer.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 28, 2026
“Um, just because...it was sort of a bummer growing up an only child,” Grace said, covering.
From "Far from the Tree" by Robin Benway
Say," he cried, "Snake's Fall is just the bummest location this side of the Sahara on a Sunday.
From The Son of his Father by Ridgwell Cullum
Aspen has been soul-searching for half a century, since hippie ski bums began ceding ground to luxury real-estate developers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
Simply, the party is able to put bums on seats again - and by that measure, things are looking up.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
When it comes to engaging fans when bums are on seats, in stadiums or at home, there is a need to refine communication and marketing strategies.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
But then, the bon ton, not content with padding only bums, moved the bustle round to the tummy at the front.
From Slate ● Jul. 21, 2025
Dasch was furious, calling them a "bunch of bums."
From Nazi Saboteurs by Samantha Seiple
“I’m both envious,” she said, “and a bit bummed out.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
“In the office, we actually get really bummed when we realize we’re having a conversation and we forgot to turn on Granola,” she says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
Sykes told Radio 1's Rock Show that after originally recording Count Your Blessings as a 19-year-old, he felt "really bummed out about how it sounded".
From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026
Bowen Yang is in a huge number of commercials these days, and every time I see him, I get a little more bummed out.
From Slate ● Feb. 8, 2026
After all that hard work, I’d feel bummed, too.
From "The House That Lou Built" by Mae Respicio
We had this life that was mainly just bumming around on your bike and drinking coffee.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2023
Summing up his life in the mid-1980s, he wrote, “I was still bumming a ride on my Academy nomination.”
From New York Times ● Jul. 27, 2023
The NFL has squeezed its overtime period from 15 minutes to 10, bumming out some.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 28, 2021
Nobody, in fact, has ever come to the Washington State Committee on Geographic Names requesting a place-name change simply because the current one was bumming them out, says Caleb Maki, the group’s executive secretary.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 14, 2020
I thought maybe I might stop in a phone booth and give old Jane Gallagher a buzz before I started bumming my way west, but I wasn't in the mood.
From "The Catcher in the Rye" by J. D. Salinger
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
