bum
1Informal. 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.
Informal. to borrow without expectation of returning; get for nothing; cadge: He's always bumming cigarettes from me.
Slang. to ruin or spoil: The weather bummed our whole weekend.
to sponge on others for a living; lead an idle or dissolute life.
to live as a hobo.
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.
Slang. erroneous or ill-advised; misleading: I think the gauge is giving me a bum readout.
Slang. physically disabled, impaired, or injured: a bum leg.
bum around, Informal. to travel, wander, or spend one's time aimlessly: We bummed around for a couple of hours after work.
Idioms about bum
bum (someone) out, Slang. to disappoint, upset, or annoy: It really bummed me out that she could have helped and didn't.
on the bum, Informal.
living or traveling as or in a manner suggesting that of a hobo or tramp.
in a state of disrepair or disorder: The oven is on the bum again.
Origin of bum
1Other words for bum
Other definitions for bum (2 of 2)
Origin of bum
2Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use bum in a sentence
After Gilliard met Ball, the two headed to Colorado and enjoyed life as ski bums, moving from resort to resort for a couple of years before eventually settling in Coeur d’Alene, and having a son.
States With Few Coronavirus Restrictions Are Spreading the Virus Beyond Their Borders | by David Armstrong | December 1, 2020 | ProPublicaIt also, frankly, bums me out that I don’t have more space at home to lay out a track.
British Dictionary definitions for bum (1 of 2)
/ (bʌm) /
British slang the buttocks or anus
Origin of bum
1British Dictionary definitions for bum (2 of 2)
/ (bʌm) informal /
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
on the bum
living as a loafer or vagrant
out of repair; broken
(tr) to get by begging; cadge: to bum a lift
(intr often foll by around) to live by begging or as a vagrant or loafer
(intr usually foll by around) to spend time to no good purpose; loaf; idle
bum someone off US and Canadian slang to disappoint, annoy, or upset someone
(prenominal) of poor quality; useless
wrong or inappropriate: a bum note
Origin of bum
2Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with bum
In addition to the idioms beginning with bum
- bum around
- bum out
- bum rap
- bum steer
also see:
- on the blink (bum)
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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