bust

¹ American  

[buhst] / bʌst /

noun

1. a sculptured, painted, drawn, or engraved representation of the upper part of the human figure, especially a portrait sculpture showing only the head and shoulders of the subject.

2. the chest or breast, especially a woman's bosom.

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bust ² American  

[buhst] / bʌst /

verb (used without object)

• busts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• busted,
  past participle,  past
• bust,
  past participle,  past
• busting
  present participle

1. Informal.

   1. to burst.

   2. to go bankrupt.

   3. to collapse from the strain of making a supreme effort.

      She was determined to make straight A's or bust.

2. Cards.

   1. Draw Poker. to fail to make a flush or straight by one card.

   2. Blackjack. to draw cards exceeding the count of 21.

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verb (used with object)

• busts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• busted,
  past participle,  past
• bust,
  past participle,  past
• busting
  present participle

1. Informal.

   1. to burst.

   2. to bankrupt; ruin financially.

2. to demote, especially in military rank or grade.

   He was busted from sergeant to private three times.

3. to tame; break.

   to bust a bronco.

4. Slang.

   1. to place under arrest.

      The gang was busted and put away on narcotics charges.

   2. to subject to a police raid.

      The bar has been busted three times for selling drinks to minors.

5. Informal.

   1. to hit.

   2. to break; fracture.

      She fell and busted her arm.

noun

1. a failure.

2. Informal. a hit; sock; punch.

   He got a bust in the nose before he could put up his hands.

3. a sudden decline in the economic conditions of a country, marked by an extreme drop in stock-market prices, business activity, and employment; depression.

4. Slang.

   1. an arrest.

   2. a police raid.

5. Informal. a drinking spree; binge.

6. Cards.

   1. a very weak hand.

   2. Bridge. a hand lacking the potential to take a single trick.

adjective

1. Informal. bankrupt; broke.

verb phrase

1. bust up

   1. to break up; separate.

      Sam and his wife busted up a year ago.

   2. to damage or destroy.

      Soldiers got in a fight and busted up the bar.

idioms

1. bust ass, to fight with the fists; strike or thrash another.

2. bust on,

   1. to attack physically; beat up.

   2. to criticize or reprimand harshly.

   3. to make fun of or laugh at; mock.

   4. to inform on.

3. bust one's ass, to make an extreme effort; exert oneself.

bust ¹ British  

/ bʌst /

verb

1. to burst or break

2. to make or become bankrupt

3. (tr) (of the police) to raid, search, or arrest

   the girl was busted for drugs

4. (tr) to demote, esp in military rank

5. (tr) to break or tame (a horse, etc)

6. (tr) to punch; hit

7. See gut

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noun

1. a raid, search, or arrest by the police

2. a punch; hit

3. a failure, esp a financial one; bankruptcy

4. a drunken party

adjective

1. broken

2. bankrupt

3. to become bankrupt

bust ² British  

/ bʌst /

noun

1. the chest of a human being, esp a woman's bosom

2. a sculpture of the head, shoulders, and upper chest of a person

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bust More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing bust

• break (bust) one's ass
• go broke (bust)

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Usage

What does or bust mean? The phrase or bust is used when someone is pursuing an end no matter what, even if they fail trying. Saying New York City or bust, for example, means someone is doing absolutely everything to go there. How is or bust pronounced?[ awr buhst ]

Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

• busting
  present
• bust
  past
• busted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• bust
  simple
• busts
  simple
• have bust
  perfect
• have busted
  perfect
• has bust
  perfect
• has busted
  perfect
• am busting
  progressive
• are busting
  progressive
• is busting
  progressive
• have been busting
  perfect progressive
• has been busting
  perfect progressive

Past

• bust
  simple
• busted
  simple
• had bust
  perfect
• had busted
  perfect
• was busting
  progressive
• were busting
  progressive
• had been busting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will bust
  simple
• will have bust
  perfect
• will have busted
  perfect
• will be busting
  progressive
• will have been busting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of bust¹

First recorded in 1640–50; from French buste, from Italian busto, probably from Latin bustum “funeral pyre, ashes, grave mound, tomb,” presumably by association with the busts erected over graves

Origin of bust²

First recorded in 1755–65; variant of burst, by loss of r before s, as in ass ², bass ², passel, etc.

Explanation

If you bust something, you have broken it. A bust can also be a statue of someone from the shoulders up. Be careful to not bust a bust on your next field trip! Several meanings of bust are pretty discouraging. You might describe your business as bust if it's totally out of money, for example. Or you might threaten your younger sister, "If you bust my ceramic unicorn, you're in big trouble!" There's also the kind of bust that might sit on your piano, like a bust of Mozart or Bach — a statue of a person's head and upper shoulders. This is the oldest meaning of the word, from the Italian busto, "upper body."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bust busts busted busting

The options market can be a venue for boom or bust bets, and traders lay down tiny sums that can pay out enormously if their bets prove correct.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026

The couple isn’t planning on getting the bust appraised due to the high cost of the service.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

An expert could analyze the individual brushstrokes on the statue to identify the exact origins of the bust, she said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

Plus, the ‘Big Dumper’ has been a big bust, the retired NFL star on the verge of a comeback and Jason Gay on tennis’s brutal summer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

“Whoa! Ms. DuForte, you know better. Y’all can’t bust up in there. It’s a trial in progress.”

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas

She motioned to the Egyptian busts and said: "These heads, they talk to me."

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

He saw the gold standard as a useful curb on governments’ ability to foment booms and busts by printing money.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026

Communities soon removed statues and busts of him and scrubbed his name from streets, parks and schools.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026

The past booms and busts within the memory market have kept Micron’s stock multiple in check despite soaring near-term earnings.

From MarketWatch ● May 4, 2026

“She’s in all this trouble and she still busts my chops about giving me a ride to and from hockey practice? She’s got nerve.”

From "Liar, Liar" by Gary Paulsen

Newly appointed BBC chief Matt Brittin recently described the licence fee as a "busted flush"

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

Louis, in comparison, is kinda busted — gloomy, tortured, unable to fully embrace the everlasting banquet Lestat has laid out for him.

From Salon ● Jun. 13, 2026

“If you went to the hospital with a busted knee, they would fix it, and that would cost more than an IVF cycle.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026

Wildlife officers have busted an illegal cockroach-breeding operation in rural Australia, seizing a skin-crawling haul worth more than $100,000 on the black market for exotic bugs.

From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026

At the exact same time, Tamika and I shouted, “Provolone!” and busted into hysterics.

From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas

With Hearts going for the title and Hibs busting a gut to derail them, there was a school of thought that this was the biggest Edinburgh derby of them all in the league.

From BBC ● Apr. 26, 2026

The Sweet 16 round of the tournament begins on Thursday night, and some of the top earners can be found still scoring baskets and busting brackets.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 25, 2026

A scenario in which the energy industry thrives without busting Americans’ budgets would be a major achievement.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 8, 2026

In another, a TCU running back was busting his way through tackles on third and long, rumbling his way into the end zone, deflating any delusions of grandeur.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 31, 2025

As I tried to hide my shock, Taylor and TeeTee finally came busting in the room all squeals and smiles, which quickly turned into gasps and frowns.

From "Patina" by Jason Reynolds

Related Words

• apprehend
• detain
• pinch