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Burns

American  
[burnz] / bɜrnz /

noun

  1. Arthur F(rank), 1904–1987, U.S. economist, born in Austria: chairman of the Federal Reserve Board 1970–78.

  2. George Nathan Birnbaum, 1896–1996, U.S. comedian (partner and husband of Gracie Allen).

  3. Robert, 1759–96, Scottish poet.

  4. Tommy Noah Brusso, 1881–1955, U.S. boxer: world heavyweight champion 1906–08.


Burns British  
/ bɜːnz /

noun

  1. Robert . 1759–96, Scottish lyric poet. His verse, written mostly in dialect, includes love songs, nature poetry, and satires. Auld Lang Syne and Tam o' Shanter are among his best known poems

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

Ken Burns, with co-directors Sarah Botstein and David Schmidt, gives us an in-depth look at the war for independence that also happened to be a civil war.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026

"Only through the combined power of instruments on multiple spacecraft could we understand this event," said Eric Burns, an astrophysicist at Louisiana State University.

From Science Daily • Mar. 30, 2026

“The vast majority of the slowdown of immigration is because of policy shifts,” said Eric Finnigan, vice president of demographics research at John Burns Research and Consulting.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 26, 2026

Burns, for his part, had been lobbying senators throughout and warning publicly that the delay was damaging the Fed’s credibility.

From Barron's • Mar. 18, 2026

Anthony Burns, a fugitive slave, who had escaped from his master in Virginia, was arrested and held in the Boston Courthouse.

From "Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad" by Ann Petry