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.
See Examples For:
Shapiro isn’t the kind of norm-breaking politician who might be expected to cuss in public.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 25, 2024
“I never heard her use a cuss word my whole life,” Wylie says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 11, 2022
Instead I had become a public-interest lawyer, before my disease took that from me, and had allowed myself to cuss occasionally, but this was a real departure.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 29, 2022
She doesn't cuss more than other athletes — or their coaches.
From Salon ● Feb. 6, 2022
Y’all ain’t got enough here to cuss a cat on without gittin’ yo’ mouf full of hair.”
From "Their Eyes Were Watching God" by Zora Neale Hurston
As such, we've replaced all cusses with "cusses."
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2015
On Guy Fieri: “He cusses like a chef,” Helle said.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 19, 2015
Just because somebody cusses doesn’t make them a bad person and just because a guy doesn’t cuss doesn’t make him a good person.
From New York Times ● Aug. 19, 2010
I heard a lot of things, cusses and cheers, jokes and conches, horns and drums, but nothing that sounded like a distinctive phrase.
From The Guardian ● May 5, 2010
I didn’t know what most of Doug Swieteck’s brother’s cusses meant, either, and it didn’t make all that much difference.
From "The Wednesday Wars" by Gary D. Schmidt
“He never yelled at me. Never cussed at me. Never lost his temper with me or the kids,” she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
It was a performance that recalled the cussed stubbornness of great England teams past.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2023
Often recognized by his trademark sailor’s cap, Newman also wrote two dozen books and earned the informal title of Canada’s “most cussed and discussed commentator,” said HarperCollins, one of his publishers, in an author’s note.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 7, 2023
Over her refusal to comply with the school’s mandate, Smith told the paper that people have "cussed her out" and that some of her best friends "won’t talk to me."
From Fox News ● Oct. 11, 2021
“It’s because of the cussed petition. They’re trying to get you— “No. Not that.
From "Lyddie" by Katherine Paterson
“But that’ll die out if there’s no emotional current underneath. The cussing has context. As long as there is an emotional story underneath the bells and whistles of cussing, then that works.”
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 26, 2024
As late as 1974, Richard Pryor was arrested for “disorderly conduct” simply for cussing in his stand-up act.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 26, 2023
Is cussing a part of communication for Scientology believers, one officially sanctioned or dictated?
From Salon ● Apr. 29, 2022
“They are under attack constantly,” he said, noting that police officers decades ago could “arrest someone for cussing them out,” until court rulings curtailed such police powers.
From New York Times ● Apr. 21, 2021
I’m cussing myself for taking her out there in the first place.
From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
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.
