bush

[ boo sh ]

/ bʊʃ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR bush ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a low plant with many branches that arise from or near the ground.

a small cluster of shrubs appearing as a single plant.

something resembling or suggesting this, as a thick, shaggy head of hair.

Also called bush lot. Canadian. a small, wooded lot, especially a farm lot with trees left standing to provide firewood, fence posts, etc.

the tail of a fox; brush.

Geography. a stretch of uncultivated land covered with mixed plant growth, bushy vegetation, trees, etc.

a large uncleared area thickly covered with mixed plant growth, trees, etc., as a jungle.

a large, sparsely populated area most of which is uncleared, as areas of Australia and Alaska.

a tree branch hung as a sign before a tavern or vintner's shop.

any tavern sign.

Slang: Vulgar. pubic hair.

Archaic. a wineshop.

verb (used without object)

to be or become bushy; branch or spread as or like a bush.

verb (used with object)

to cover, protect, support, or mark with a bush or bushes.

adjective

bush-league.

Nearby words

busch, adolf, buschke-löwenstein tumor, buschke-ollendorf syndrome, busera, busgirl, bush, bush baby, bush ballad, bush basil, bush bean, bush broom

Idioms

beat around/about the bush, to avoid coming to the point; delay in approaching a subject directly: Stop beating around the bush and tell me what you want.

beat the bushes, to scout or search for persons or things far and wide: beating the bushes for engineers.

go bush, Australian.

to flee or escape into the bush.
Slang. to become wild.

Origin of bush

before 1000; Middle English busshe, Old English busc (in place-names); cognate with Dutch bos wood, German Busch, Old Norse buskr bush

Related formsbush·less, adjectivebush·like, adjective

Definition for bush (2 of 4)

bush

[ boo sh ]

/ bʊʃ /

noun

a lining of metal or the like set into an orifice to guard against wearing by friction, erosion, etc.

bushing(def 2).

verb (used with object)

to furnish with a bush; line with metal.

Origin of bush

1560–70; < Middle Dutch bussche; see box¹

Definition for bush (3 of 4)

Bush

[ boo sh ]

/ bʊʃ /

noun

BarbaraBarbara Pierce, born 1925, U.S. First Lady 1989–93 (wife of George H. W. Bush).

George (Herbert Walker),born 1924, U.S. politician: vice president 1981–89; 41st president of the U.S. 1989–93.

his sonGeorge W(alker)Dubya, born 1946, U.S. businessman and politician: governor of Texas 1994–2001; 43rd president of the U.S. 2001–09.

Van·ne·var

[vuh-nee-vahr, -ver] /vəˈni vɑr, -vər/, 1890–1974, U.S. electrical engineer: education and research administrator.

Definition for bush (4 of 4)

bush.

bushel; bushels.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for bush

“The institution of marraige [sic] is under attack in our society and it needs to be strengthened,” Bush wrote.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
A few days later, Bush replied, “We will uphold the law in Florida.”
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
To those who agreed with him, Bush pledged that the law against same-sex marriage would remain intact.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Bush busy engaging constituents on both sides of the same-sex marriage debate ahead of the 2004 presidential election.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST

But Bush is as exciting to many conservatives as Hillary Clinton is to many progressives, meaning not so much.
The Devil in Mike Huckabee|Dean Obeidallah|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Stevens lowered his voice, and stopped to peer again about the bush.
The Hunted Woman|James Oliver Curwood
The outlines were more rugged and varied than those of Samoa, and the growth of bush was certainly more luxuriant.
Stevenson's Shrine|Laura Stubbs
I wouldnt have dreamed that 229 hydrangeas could look so lovely, except on the bush.
The Automobile Girls at Newport|Laura Dent Crane
And yet he was conquered by a woman; the fairy Vivien enchanted the enchanter and kept him in a hawthorn bush under a spell.
The Life of Joan of Arc, Vol. 1 and 2 (of 2)|Anatole France
When I git hum I go an' hide it in the bush somewhars--jest to git it out o' my way.
In the Days of Poor Richard|Irving Bacheller

British Dictionary definitions for bush (1 of 3)

bush

/ (bʊʃ) /

noun

a dense woody plant, smaller than a tree, with many branches arising from the lower part of the stem; shrub

a dense cluster of such shrubs; thicket

something resembling a bush, esp in densitya bush of hair

the bush an uncultivated or sparsely settled area, esp in Africa, Australia, New Zealand, or Canada: usually covered with trees or shrubs, varying from open shrubby country to dense rainforest
(as modifier)bush flies

Canadian an area of land on a farm on which timber is grown and cutAlso called: bush lot, woodlot

a forested area; woodland

the bush informal the countryside, as opposed to the cityout in the bush

a fox's tail; brush

obsolete

a bunch of ivy hung as a vintner's sign in front of a tavern
any tavern sign

beat about the bush to avoid the point at issue; prevaricate

adjective

Australian and NZ informal rough-and-ready

Western African informal ignorant or stupid, esp as considered typical of unwesternized rustic life

US and Canadian informal unprofessional, unpolished, or second-rate

go bush informal, Australian and NZ

to abandon city amenities and live rough
to run wild

verb

(intr) to grow thick and bushy

(tr) to cover, decorate, support, etc, with bushes

bush it (tr) Australian to camp out in the bush

Word Origin for bush

C13: of Germanic origin; compare Old Norse buski, Old High German busc, Middle Dutch bosch; related to Old French bosc wood, Italian bosco

British Dictionary definitions for bush (2 of 3)

bush

/ (bʊʃ) /

noun

Also called (esp US and Canadian): bushing a thin metal sleeve or tubular lining serving as a bearing or guide

verb

to fit a bush to (a casing, bearing, etc)

Word Origin for bush

C15: from Middle Dutch busse box, bush; related to German Büchse tin, Swedish hjulbōssa wheel-box, Late Latin buxis box 1

British Dictionary definitions for bush (3 of 3)

Bush

/ (bʊʃ) /

noun

George . born 1924, US Republican politician; vice president of the US (1981–89): 41st president of the US (1989–93)

his son, George W (alker). born 1946, US Republican politician; 43rd president of the US (2001–09)

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

Word Origin and History for bush

bush

"many-stemmed woody plant," Old English bysc, from West Germanic *busk "bush, thicket" (cf. Old Saxon and Old High German busc, Dutch bosch, bos, German Busch). Influenced by or combined with cognate words from Scandinavian (cf. Old Norse buskr, Danish busk, but this might be from West Germanic) and Old French (busche "firewood," apparently of Frankish origin), and also perhaps Anglo-Latin bosca "firewood," from Medieval Latin busca (whence Italian bosco, Spanish bosque, French bois), which apparently also was borrowed from West Germanic; cf. Boise.

In British American colonies, applied from 1650s to the uncleared districts, hence "country," as opposed to town (1780); probably originally from Dutch bosch in the same sense, because it seems to appear first in English in former Dutch colonies. Meaning "pubic hair" (especially of a woman) is from 1745. To beat the bushes (mid-15c.) is a way to rouse birds so that they fly into the net which others are holding, which originally was the same thing as beating around the bush (see beat (v.)).

Idioms and Phrases with bush

bush

see beat around the bush; beat the bushes for; bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.

bush

noun

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

adjective

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Idioms

Origin of bush

Definition for bush (2 of 4)

bush

noun

verb (used with object)

Origin of bush

Definition for bush (3 of 4)

Bush

noun

Definition for bush (4 of 4)

bush.

Examples from the Web for bush

British Dictionary definitions for bush (1 of 3)

bush

noun

adjective

verb

Word Origin for bush

British Dictionary definitions for bush (2 of 3)

bush

noun

verb

Word Origin for bush

British Dictionary definitions for bush (3 of 3)

Bush

noun

Word Origin and History for bush

bush

Idioms and Phrases with bush

bush

bush

.css-1gxch3{color:#1a1a1a;font-size:18px;font-weight:normal;font-style:italic;}noun

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

adjective

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Origin of bush

Definition for.css-ylq2vz{color:#1a1a1a;} bush (2 of 4)

bush

noun

verb (used with object)

Origin of bush

Definition for bush (3 of 4)

Bush

noun

Definition for bush (4 of 4)

bush.

Examples from the Web for bush

British Dictionary definitions for bush (1 of 3)

bush

noun

adjective

verb

Word Origin for bush

British Dictionary definitions for bush (2 of 3)

bush

noun

verb

Word Origin for bush

British Dictionary definitions for bush (3 of 3)

Bush

noun

Word Origin and History for bush

bush

Idioms and Phrases with bush

bush

noun

Definition for bush (2 of 4)