buddy
noun
comrade or chum (often used as a term of address).
buddy
1 American
[buhd-ee]
/ ˈbʌd i /
verb (used without object)
-
buddies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
buddied,
past participle, past
-
buddying
present participle
verb phrase
-
buddy up to to become friendly with or curry the favor of.
He was buddying up to the political bosses.
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buddy up
-
to become friendly; be on friendly or intimate terms.
-
to work closely together.
to buddy up with a student from another high school.
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Buddy
2
American
[buhd-ee]
/ ˈbʌd i /
noun
buddy
British
/ ˈbʌdɪ /
noun
-
Also called (as a term of address): bud. an informal word for friend
-
a volunteer who visits and gives help and support to a person suffering from AIDS
-
a volunteer who gives help and support to a person who has become disabled but is returning to work
verb
Usage
What does buddy mean? Buddy is most commonly used as an informal word for a friend. Buddy is often used as a form of address (as in Hey, buddy, I haven’t seen you in a while!) or a term of endearment (an affectionate way of referring to someone). It is sometimes shortened to bud. Buddy is primarily used in the United States. Example: We don’t get together as much as we used to, but whenever I hang out with my buddies from college it’s still like old times.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
buddysimple
-
buddiessimple
-
have buddiedperfect
-
has buddiedperfect
-
am buddyingprogressive
-
are buddyingprogressive
-
is buddyingprogressive
-
have been buddyingperfect progressive
-
has been buddyingperfect progressive
Past
-
buddiedsimple
-
had buddiedperfect
-
was buddyingprogressive
-
were buddyingprogressive
-
had been buddyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of buddy
1840–50, perhaps reduced form of brother
Explanation
A buddy is a good friend. Your best buddy in elementary school may still be a good buddy when you graduate from high school. If you love to hang out with a certain friend, she's your buddy. You could also call her your pal or your chum. Sometimes when kids are new in school, a teacher will ask another student to be their buddy — to help them feel comfortable and welcome. The word first appeared in the mid-19th century in the US, either as slang for brother or from the British butty, or "companion."
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:
"I'll definitely make that offer to my old buddy, old pal, and we'll see if he's available," said 38-year-old Fury.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
Was Mr Belding your dimples karaoke birthday buddy?
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
My golf buddy worked as a financial adviser.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026
When Owen Wilson signed on to do a buddy action thriller with muscular "Reacher" star Alan Ritchson, he understood very quickly there would have to be a strict division of labor on set.
From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026
“Stay with your buddy at all times. And have fun.”
From "The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl" by Stacy McAnulty
Tencent said it’s making “substantial progress” toward being AI-empowered, through its Hy3 LLM, WorkBuddy AI office productivity service and Core Buddy AI coding tool.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026
By contrast, Murrill’s more moderate Republican predecessor, Buddy Caldwell, who served as attorney general from 2008 to 2015, opposed just 33% of all claims.
From Salon ● Aug. 10, 2026
To collaborate with them, especially Willie, because I produced a record on him with Buddy Cannon… If you’d told me, one day I’d be doing that?
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026
Buddy Bradley was the African-American choreographer who envisioned these moves and instilled in Matthews, a nervous performer, the confidence she needed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026
He is the Dog of Our Hearts, and he lives with Beverly, but truthfully, Buddy belongs to all of us—me and Raymie and Beverly—because we rescued him together.
From "Louisiana's Way Home" by Kate DiCamillo
It’s hard not to walk out of “Nimrods” with a little spark of desire to start a punk band and hit the road with your buddies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
Chinese users of AI-powered companion bots have bid heart-rending farewells to their virtual buddies as national regulations took effect Wednesday aimed at curbing the risk of emotional dependency.
From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026
He and his club baseball buddies from Stephen F. Austin State University were in town for a tournament.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026
A luxe gaming set that dad can whip out to impress his poker buddies, before they clean him out.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
“In my day, me and my buddies would be all over the neighborhood. Wouldn’t come home till dark. You kids, nowadays...”
From "The Parker Inheritance" by Varian Johnson
While his daughter and her friend were “bopping away” to every song, Grant said, he buddied up with Swift’s boyfriend, NFL tight end Travis Kelce.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2024
But after Eden’s death, Danielle finds out that her daughter had buddied up to some of the local high school students by throwing parties when her employers were away.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 15, 2023
A 12-year-old girl who has just recovered from leukaemia has been buddied with a West End star through Momentum Children's Charity.
From BBC ● Mar. 21, 2022
Ministers’ aides were buddied up and told to get to grips with a different department so they could shadow each other if another fell sick.
From The Guardian ● Mar. 12, 2021
They buddied up at movies and concerts; shared books and records.
From New York Times ● Jan. 27, 2016
That’s what makes the negotiations so comical, and Moore looks like a fool for buddying up to John Angelos.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 9, 2023
The attorneys were buddying up to the client, like “I could do this for you, I’m going to do that for you, you can call me 24/7, I’m always available, I have your back.”
From Slate ● Dec. 6, 2019
He has veered between buddying up to China’s President Xi Jinping and attacking Beijing over trade.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 8, 2018
Now we have NK and China buddying up,especially at a crucial time following the trade issues.
From New York Times ● Mar. 27, 2018
Vonetta, who was buddying up to one of the three sisters, could get her own toast.
From "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
