cuss
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
-
to swear at; curse.
He cussed the pedestrian for getting in his way.
-
to criticize or reprimand in harsh terms (often followed byout ).
The coach cussed out the team for losing.
noun
-
a curse; oath
-
a person or animal, esp an annoying one
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
cusssimple
-
cussessimple
-
have cussedperfect
-
has cussedperfect
-
am cussingprogressive
-
are cussingprogressive
-
is cussingprogressive
-
have been cussingperfect progressive
-
has been cussingperfect progressive
Past
-
cussedsimple
-
had cussedperfect
-
was cussingprogressive
-
were cussingprogressive
-
had been cussingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of cuss
An Americanism first recorded in 1765–75; variant of curse, with loss of r and shortening of vowel, as in ass 2, bass 2, passel, etc.
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.
Cutting back to Tuesday on the radio, DJ Envy asked her, “What’s up with you and farts?” as Curtis mentioned using “fart digger” and “fart knocker” as HGTV-palatable cuss words.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 11, 2026
Shapiro isn’t the kind of norm-breaking politician who might be expected to cuss in public.
From Seattle Times • Jan. 25, 2024
"Heck, yes. But am I going to allow a child to cuss anyone out? Heck, no."
From Salon • Oct. 11, 2021
Reintroducing the Colonel and branding him as “The Original Celebrity Chef” represented a strategic imperative for KFC, especially in the time before “foodie” became a tiresome cuss word of its own.
From Slate • Dec. 11, 2020
While hanging around my grandpa’s store, I had learned a few cuss words from the men, but I never did use them.
From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls
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.
