buzz

[ buhz ]

/ bʌz /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR buzz ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a low, vibrating, humming sound, as of bees, machinery, or people talking.

a rumor or report.

Informal. a phone call: When I find out, I'll give you a buzz.

Slang.

a feeling of intense enthusiasm, excitement, or exhilaration: I got a terrific buzz from those Pacific sunsets.
a feeling of slight intoxication.

verb (used without object)

to make a low, vibrating, humming sound.

to speak or murmur with such a sound.

to be filled with the sound of buzzing or whispering: The room buzzed.

to whisper; gossip: Everyone is buzzing about the scandal.

to move busily from place to place.

Slang. to go; leave (usually followed by off or along): I'll buzz along now. Tell him to buzz off and leave me alone.

verb (used with object)

to make a buzzing sound with: The fly buzzed its wings.

to tell or spread (a rumor, gossip, etc.) secretively.

to signal or summon with a buzzer: He buzzed his secretary.

Informal. to make a phone call to.

Aeronautics.

to fly a plane very low over: to buzz a field.
to signal or greet (someone) by flying a plane low and slowing the motor spasmodically.

Nearby words

Idioms

have/get a buzz on, Slang. to be slightly intoxicated: After a few beers they all had a buzz on.

Origin of buzz

1350–1400; Middle English busse; imitative

Related formsbuzz·ing·ly, adverb

buzz

[ buhz ]

/ bʌz /

noun Slang.

a man's very short haircut; crew cut.

Origin of buzz

origin uncertain

Aldrin

[ awl-drin ]

/ ˈɔl drɪn /

noun

Edwin Eugene, Jr.Buzz, born 1930, U.S. astronaut.

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

Examples from the Web for buzz

The exposure and buzz from Short Term have raised her profile considerably.
Brie Larson’s Hollywood Transformation|Marlow Stern|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Few series arrive with the buzz of Aaron Sorkin's HBO drama.
'The Newsroom' Ended As It Began: Weird, Controversial, and Noble|Kevin Fallon|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
All this buzz, the continued tabloid fascination with Hurley, is down—absurdly—to that dress.
Happy 20th Birthday, Liz Hurley’s Safety-Pin Dress|Tim Teeman|December 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The grapevine and the international media were alight with the buzz of the student killed by the police during the demonstration.
How Havel Inspired the Velvet Revolution|Michael Zantovsky|December 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Clayton businesses and buildings are preparing for lockdowns as the Buzz Westfall Center in Clayton where the grand jury meets.
Ferguson Tensions in Black and White|Seth Ferranti|November 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
With a whizz and a buzz the auto darted across the store, bringing up with a bang against the low part of the opposite counter.
Bunny Brown and His Sister Sue Keeping Store|Laura Lee Hope
A great six-foot German struggling with a slim figure that Buzz somehow recognised as his lieutenant, Hatton.
Cheerful--By Request|Edna Ferber
Then five minutes of painful reading ensued, with the buzz of voices increasing.
The Man with a Shadow|George Manville Fenn
Humming and strumming, and singing and smoking, splashing, and sparkling; a buzz of voices and booming of sea!
The Open Air|Richard Jefferies
She looked and saw two men advance with eager step and fall on bended knee at the foot of the throne amid a buzz of excitement.
The King's Men|Robert Grant, John Boyle O'Reilly, J. S. Dale, and John T. Wheelwright

British Dictionary definitions for buzz

buzz

/ (bʌz) /

noun

a rapidly vibrating humming sound, as that of a prolonged z or of a bee in flight

a low sound, as of many voices in conversation

a rumour; report; gossip

informal a telephone callI'll give you a buzz

slang

a pleasant sensation, as from a drug such as cannabis
a sense of excitement; kick

verb

(intr) to make a vibrating sound like that of a prolonged z

(intr) to talk or gossip with an air of excitement or urgencythe town buzzed with the news

(tr) to utter or spread (a rumour)

(intr often foll by about) to move around quickly and busily; bustle

(tr) to signal or summon with a buzzer

(tr) informal to call by telephone

(tr) informal

to fly an aircraft very low over (an object)to buzz a ship
to fly an aircraft very close to or across the path of (another aircraft), esp to warn or intimidate

(tr) (esp of insects) to make a buzzing sound with (wings, etc)

Word Origin for buzz

C16: of imitative origin

aldrin

/ (ˈɔːldrɪn) /

noun

a brown to white poisonous crystalline solid, more than 95 per cent of which consists of the compound C 12 H 8 Cl 6, which is used as an insecticide. Melting pt: 105°C

Word Origin for aldrin

C20: named after K. Alder (1902–58) German chemist

Aldrin

/ (ˈɔːldrɪn) /

noun

Edwin Eugene Jr., known as Buzz. born 1930, US astronaut; the second man to set foot on the moon on July 20, 1969, during the Apollo 11 flight

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 buzz

buzz

late 15c., echoic of bees and other insects. Aviation sense of "fly low and close" is by 1941 (see buzz (n.)). Related: Buzzed; buzzing. Buzz off (1914) originally meant "to ring off on the telephone," from the use of buzzers to signal a call or message on old systems. As a command, it originally would have been telling someone to get off the line.

buzz

"a busy rumour" [Rowe], 1620s (earlier "a fancy," c.1600), figurative use from buzz (v.). Literal sense of "humming sound" is from 1640s. A "buzz" was the characteristic sound of an airplane in early 20c.; hence verbal sense "to fly swiftly," by 1928; by 1940 especially in military use, "to fly low over a surface as a warning signal" (e.g. that target practice is about to begin):

The patrol aircraft shall employ the method of warning known as "buzzing" which consists of low flight by the airplane and repeated opening and closing of the throttle. [1941 Supplement to the Code of Federal Regulations of the United States of America," Chap. II, Corps of Engineers, War Department, p. 3434, etc. ]

Meaning "pleasant sense of intoxication" first recorded 1935. The children's game of counting off with 7 or multiples of it replaced by buzz is attested from 1864 and is mentioned in "Little Women" (1868). To give (someone) a buzz (by 1922) is from the buzz that announced a call on old telephone systems.

Science definitions for buzz

aldrin

[ ôl′drĭn ]

A highly poisonous white powder used as a crop pesticide and to kill termites. Because of its toxicity to animals and humans, its production has been discontinued. Aldrin is a chlorinated derivative of naphthalene closely related to dieldrin. Chemical formula: C12H8Cl6.

buzz

noun

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

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Nearby words

Idioms

Origin of buzz

buzz

noun Slang.

Origin of buzz

Aldrin

noun

Examples from the Web for buzz

buzz

noun

verb

Word Origin for buzz

aldrin

noun

Word Origin for aldrin

Aldrin

noun

buzz

buzz

aldrin