an alcoholic liquor or spirit distilled from molasses or some other fermented sugar-cane product.
alcoholic drink in general; intoxicating liquor.
He warned against the demon rum.
odd, strange, or queer.
a rum fellow.
problematic; difficult; bad.
a rum situation.
First recorded in 1645–55; perhaps short for obsolete rumbullion, rumbustion, of obscure origin
First recorded in 1750–60; earlier rome, room “great,” of uncertain origin; perhaps from Romani; see Rom
An Americanism dating back to 1870–75; by shortening
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The adjacent "mipyme" -- Cuba's acronym for small business which is used as shorthand for any private enterprise -- is a picture of plenty, offering everything from rice, Cuba's staple starch, to rum and ketchup.
From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026
On Thursday, Seedat told the inquiry he was not aware "red rum" was a reference to murder.
From BBC ● Apr. 23, 2026
Afterward, thousands of giddy fans thronged the malecón, Havana’s seaside promenade, laughing and drinking rum.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 20, 2026
At its Indian-inspired sister bar, Bagheera, order the Elephant’s Child, made with a toasted rice- infused rum.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 27, 2025
A man’s life was reduced to a shopping list of molasses, rum, fruits, and candy.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
In 2024, the Isle of Rum, which is in the Highland Council area, was named Scotland's first International Dark Sky Sanctuary by the organisation DarkSky International.
From BBC ● May 28, 2026
I Am Maximus is bidding to become the first horse to carry top weight to victory since triple winner Red Rum in the 1970s.
From BBC ● Apr. 6, 2026
At the Pirates’ fan site Rum Bunter, Emma Lingan wrote: “Fandom isn’t a streaming subscription you cancel when the content gets bad.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 22, 2025
Josh Friedman is the chief executive of Dr. Squatch, a maker of products like Bay Rum soap and Pine Tar “Odor Squatching” deodorant, which was acquired by Unilever this year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 27, 2025
At the start of the Rum War, they had only seventy-five vessels, not all of them fit for pursuit.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
Son of a Manhattan hotel owner, Ben Bates evolved his philosophy of an elegant life when, as a boy, he watched his father's daily ritual in preparing punch from Medford Rum.*
From Time Magazine Archive
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.
