bushman
noun
a woodsman.
bushman
1 American
[boosh-muhn]
/ ˈbʊʃ mən /
noun
bushmen
plural
-
a woodsman.
-
Australian. a pioneer; dweller in the bush.
-
(initial capital letter) San.
Bushman
2
American
[boosh-muhn]
/ ˈbʊʃ mən /
noun
Bushman
1
British
/ ˈbʊʃmən /
noun
-
a member of a hunting and gathering people of southern Africa, esp the Kalahari region, typically having leathery yellowish skin, short stature, and prominent buttocks
-
any language of this people, belonging to the Khoisan family
bushman
2
British
/ ˈbʊʃmən /
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of bushman
1775–85; bush 1 + man, modeled on Afrikaans boschjesman literally, man of the bush
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:
Locals know Phillips as a bushman with survival skills that would have set him up for building shelters and foraging for food in the wilderness.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2025
“Bushman” could accurately be called a fish-out-of-water movie, but part of the conceit is that Gabriel, who happily identifies as a bushman, seems more settled than everyone else.
From New York Times ● Feb. 1, 2024
Murray's bid for a second grand slam title Down Under has sparked a light-hearted dig at Australia's iconic celluloid hero "Crocodile Dundee", the weathered bushman played by Paul Hogan in the 1986 film.
From Reuters ● Jan. 15, 2013
Surely an Inuit elder or a Kalahari bushman has equal credentials when it comes to describing and passing on a way of life or way of thought to enhance the lives of future generations.
From The Guardian ● Nov. 22, 2012
“Does the sir call?” asked the bushman, awakened in a moment, and rolling himself down the mound, on which the store-waggon stood, to the tent.
From Jasper Lyle by Ward, Harriet
For Kablan Porquet, founder of the Bushman Cafe, a pillar of the economic capital Abidjan's Pan-African cultural scene, Ivory Coast has "made the choice to abandon culture".
From Barron's ● Feb. 20, 2026
However, Kjærvik and Bushman said a meta-analytic review on the role of arousal would fill an important gap in understanding how to resolve anger.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 18, 2024
“Right away, I could tell, ‘Oh, she doesn’t want anything dumbed down,’” says Bushman, who has been with the New York version of “Chicago” for a decade.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 29, 2024
“He’s one of the toughest guys out there,” Bushman said, “and he loves to play the game.”
From Washington Times ● Sep. 5, 2023
I had no brandy or ammonia to administer, and therefore let the old Bushman pursue his remedy, though I felt, somehow, it would be useless.
From From Veldt Camp Fires by Bryden, H.A.
Herzog depicts the bushmen who aid Boyes as dignified, diligent and intelligent without romanticizing them while capturing the rugged beauty of the African landscape.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 24, 2026
The Namibian bushmen seem pretty impressed with Eddie's virgin fire–making skills, too.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 20, 2013
Just 200 years ago, San bushmen decorated the walls of the Drakensburg mountains with abstract patterns eerily similar to the ones in France and Spain.
From Slate ● Oct. 18, 2012
BBC World Affairs Editor John Simpson says the court judgement is a remarkable victory for the bushmen.
From BBC ● Jan. 27, 2011
Brave and intelligent as they were, they were 'new chums,' and certainly not born bushmen.
From Australian Pictures Drawn with Pen and Pencil by Willoughby, Howard
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.
