bud

¹ American  

[buhd] / bʌd /

noun

1. Botany.

   1. a small axillary or terminal protuberance on a plant, containing rudimentary foliage leaf bud, the rudimentary inflorescence flower bud, or both mixed bud.

   2. an undeveloped or rudimentary stem or branch of a plant.

2. Zoology. (in certain animals of low organization) a prominence that develops into a new individual, sometimes permanently attached to the parent and sometimes becoming detached; gemmule.

3. Mycology. a small, rounded outgrowth produced from a fungus spore or cell by a process of asexual reproduction, eventually separating from the parent cell as a new individual: commonly produced by most yeast and a few other fungi.

4. Anatomy. any small rounded part.

5. an immature or undeveloped person or thing.

6. Slang. marijuana, especially potent marijuana from the buds, or flowering tops, of the hemp plant.

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verb (used without object)

budded, budding

1. to put forth or produce buds.

2. to begin to develop.

3. to be in an early stage of development.

verb (used with object)

budded, budding

1. to cause to bud.

2. Horticulture. to graft by inserting a single bud into the stock.

idioms

1. in the bud, in an immature or undeveloped state: Also in bud.

   a Shakespeare in the bud.

2. nip in the bud, to stop (something) in the beginning of its development.

   The rebellion was nipped in the bud.

bud ² American  

[buhd] / bʌd /

noun

1. brother; buddy (used in informal address, as to one's brother or to a man or boy whose name is not known to the speaker).

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Bud ³ American  

[buhd] / bʌd /

Or Budd

noun

1. a male given name.

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bud ¹ British  

/ bʌd /

noun

1. informal short for buddy

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bud ² British  

/ bʌd /

noun

1. a swelling on a plant stem consisting of overlapping immature leaves or petals

2. 1. a partially opened flower

   2. ( in combination )

      rosebud

3. any small budlike outgrowth

   taste buds

4. something small or immature

5. an asexually produced outgrowth in simple organisms, such as yeasts, and the hydra that develops into a new individual

6. a slang word for marijuana

7. at the stage of producing buds

8. to put an end to (an idea, movement, etc) in its initial stages

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verb

1. (intr) (of plants and some animals) to produce buds

2. (intr) to begin to develop or grow

3. (tr) horticulture to graft (a bud) from one plant onto another, usually by insertion under the bark

bud Scientific  

/ bŭd /

1. A small swelling on a branch or stem, containing an undeveloped shoot, leaf, or flower. Some species have mixed buds containing two of these structures, or even all three.

2. ◆ Terminal buds occur at the end of a stem, twig, or branch.

3. ◆ Axillary buds, also known as lateral buds, occur in the axils of leaves (in the upper angle of where the leaf grows from the stem).

4. ◆ Accessory buds often occur clustered around terminal buds or above and on either side of axillary buds. Accessory buds are usually smaller than terminal and axillary buds.

5. A small rounded outgrowth on an asexually reproducing organism, such as a yeast or hydra, that is capable of developing into a new individual.

6. See more at budding

7. A tiny part or structure, such as a taste bud, that is shaped like a plant bud.

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1. To form or produce a bud or buds.

bud More Idioms  

1. see nip in the bud.

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Other Word Forms

• budder noun
• budless adjective
• budlike adjective
• nonbudding adjective

Etymology

Origin of bud¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English budde, bodde “bud, spray, pod”; further origin uncertain; perhaps from Middle Dutch botte “bud,” or Old French bout “tip, end”

Origin of bud²

An Americanism dating back to 1850–55; back formation from buddy

Example Sentences

Hilton Worldwide Holdings appeared earlier this month to have nipped a similar public-relations crisis in the bud.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 23, 2026

This is why a lot of Jews want to nip that rhetoric in the bud.

From Slate • Dec. 19, 2025

When the bloom begins, it starts as a massive green bud and grows fast.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 21, 2025

He seemed to appear at every press conference and Cabinet meeting and was almost always getting on and off Marine One as Trump's first bud.

From Salon • May 21, 2025

That way I could be his bud if he needed one.

From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri