bust

1 of 4

noun (1)

1
art : a sculptured representation of the upper part of the human figure including the head and neck and usually part of the shoulders and breast
has a bust of Abraham Lincoln in his office
2
: the upper part of the human torso between neck and waist
especially : the breasts of a woman
her bust size

bust

2 of 4

verb

busted also bust; busting

transitive verb

1
a
: to break or smash especially with force
bust a window
also : to make inoperative
busted my watch
b
: to bring an end to : break up
helped bust trustsNewsweek
often used with up
better not try to bust up his happy marriageForbes
c
: to ruin financially
the game of cheaters, which has busted more men than blackjackArthur Mayse
d
: exhaust, wear out
used in phrases like bust one's butt to describe making a strenuous effort
e
: to tease or give a hard time to
often used in phrases like bust one's chops
I'm just busting your chops.
2
: tame
bronco busting
3
: demote
busted them to the bottom of the seniority listTime
4
slang
a
: arrest
busted for carrying gunsSaul Gottlieb
b
: raid
busted the apartment
5
: hit, slug
felt like busting him in the face
6
informal : to execute or perform (a difficult, elaborate, or acrobatic movement, as when dancing)
bust a dance move
Hot Hot Heat's jittery, caffeinated rhythms and disco grooves are helping persuade punk kids to bust a move …Christian Hoard

intransitive verb

1
: to go broke
2
a
: burst
laughing fit to bust
b
: break down
Her camera busted.
3
a
card games : to lose at cards by exceeding a limit (such as the count of 21 in blackjack)
b
poker : to fail to complete a straight (see straight entry 4 sense 3) or flush

bust

3 of 4

noun (2)

1
a
: spree
b
: a hearty drinking session
a beer bust
2
a
: a complete failure : flop
b
economics : a business depression (see depression sense 2)
boom and bust
3
: punch, sock
a good bust on the noseJ. T. Farrell
4
law enforcement, slang
a
: a police raid (see raid entry 1 sense 2b)
b
: arrest sense 1
made a couple of drug busts

bust

4 of 4

adjective

variants or busted
economics : bankrupt, broke
go bust

Examples of bust in a Sentence

Verb He busted his watch when he fell. I think the camera is busted. Police busted 12 gang members on weapons charges. She got busted for drug possession. Two students got busted by the teacher for smoking in the bathroom.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
What’s more, the bra has earned praise from a variety of bust sizes. Clara McMahon, Peoplemag, 13 Mar. 2024 The find last Sunday was among three busts at the busy border crossing over the weekend. Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Feb. 2024 Customs and Border Protection officers seized 6.5 tons of methamphetamine in a bust in Eagle Pass, a Texas border town, the agency said Thursday. Aliza Chasan, CBS News, 22 Feb. 2024 North of Sacramento, in Yuba County, sheriffs deputies arrested 14 Chinese — some U.S. citizens and some with Chinese passports — in three marijuana busts between March and May. Stuart Leavenworth, Sacramento Bee, 21 Feb. 2024 On March 3, Kardashian wore a lace turtleneck dress from the luxury fashion house's fall/winter 2024-2025 collection, complete with a sheer bust, dramatic sleeve flares, and an unexpected open back emphasized by her thick, slicked back ponytail. Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 3 Mar. 2024 Free agent bust Isaiah Oliver was moved out of the nickel role. Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 2 Mar. 2024 Details of a 2022 poaching bust involving three anglers and five oversized sturgeon recently came to light in a press release from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Katie Hill, Outdoor Life, 28 Feb. 2024 Some were saying the signing was going to be a bust. Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 27 Feb. 2024
Verb
Spanish police have busted a forgery ring for allegedly selling fake Banksy artworks. Julia Binswanger, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 Mar. 2024 Awareness is the first step to busting this social media echo chamber, says lead author Iain Xie Weissburg, a first-year master’s student in UCSB’s electrical and computer engineering program. IEEE Spectrum, 2 Mar. 2024 And the year prior, authorities busted a black-market caviar ring in California. Tori Latham, Robb Report, 7 Mar. 2024 Rowdy bear cub siblings tussled with each other and slipped inside a narrow crawlspace in a California building — so their mom had to bust in after them. Brooke Baitinger, Sacramento Bee, 29 Feb. 2024 School districts can now install cameras on school buses to bust drivers who fail to stop for a school bus displaying a stop signal. Miami Herald, 22 Feb. 2024 More than a year after its release, SOS is still busting records. Lars Brandle, Billboard, 14 Feb. 2024 The three-time first team all-American set 19 NCAA records, busting off 386 yards and seven touchdowns in his second game as a freshman. Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Feb. 2024 While busting those involved, Bugas found several Bennett cronies complicit. Jack Kresnak, Detroit Free Press, 28 Jan. 2024
Adjective
And while those payments crimped Spotify’s profits, and the company has lately struggled to sell stock investors on a convincing growth story, Spotify is also not about to go bust. Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 2 Jan. 2024 The bra is designed to decrease bust size by about 1 inch and features smooth and nearly seamless cups with underwire for extra support and adjustable straps for a better fit. Jessie Quinn, Peoplemag, 5 Aug. 2023 In the late 1980s, the commercial real estate boom turned bust. Alexandra Digby, Fortune, 28 Apr. 2023 The state was in the midst of a speculative land frenzy that was always threatening to go bust. Alexander Sammon, Harper's Magazine, 16 Oct. 2023 The first of three busts on our list from the incredibly bust-y 2015 draft. Evan Grant, Dallas News, 28 June 2023 The foundation’s public backers — at the time the province of Messina, the Taormina municipality and the Messina city council — were bust. Ilaria Ravarino, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 June 2023 Crushed by tragedy: George McCloud, more than a Pacers bust These players have made significant contributions to the Indiana Pacers franchise and have left a lasting impact on the team's history. Joe Mutascio, The Indianapolis Star, 3 July 2023 There are prospects likely to be available at No. 5 who are viewed as having both superstar and bust potential. Detroit Free Press, 20 June 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bust.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

borrowed from French & Italian; French buste "part of the torso above the waist," going back to Middle French, borrowed from Italian busto "tree trunk" (15th-century Upper Italian), "part of the torso above the waist, corset, sculpture or painting representing the head and upper body," going back to Vulgar Latin *būstis "trunk," perhaps alteration of Latin fūstis "stick, rod, cudgel" by crossing with a Celtic word of like meaning

Note: Outcomes of *būstis in Italy with the meaning "trunk" are attested in Upper Italian and to a limited degree in the south (see Lessico etimologico italiano); outside of Italy compare Old Occitan bustz "torso," Romansh (Engadine) büst, (Surselvan [dialect of the upper Rhine]) best "tree trunk, torso, body, bodice," Romanian buşteán "tree trunk." The traditional etymology of Italian busto connects it with classical Latin bustum "funeral pyre, burial mound" but the improbable notion of a transfer in sense from "burial mound" to "representation of the upper body" is not supported by the Romance evidence, which shows a clear progression "tree trunk" > "trunk of the body."

Verb

variant of burst entry 1 with assimilatory loss of /r/ before /s/

Note: See note at hoss

Noun (2)

derivative of bust entry 2

Adjective

from predicative use of bust entry 3

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1645, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1639, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 2

Noun (2)

1834, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Adjective

1836, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bust was in 1639

Dictionary Entries Near bust

Cite this Entry

“Bust.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bust. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

bust

1 of 3 noun
1
: a piece of sculpture representing the upper part of the human figure including the human head and neck
2
: the upper part of the human body
especially : the breasts of a woman

bust

2 of 3 verb
busted also bust; busting
1
a
: to break or smash with force
busted my watch
b
: to bring an end to : break up sense 2
c
: to ruin or become ruined financially
d
: exhaust entry 1 sense 1b, wear sense 3c
used in phrases like bust one's butt to describe the act of trying very hard
2
: to tame an animal
bust a bronco
3
: demote
4
5
buster noun

bust

3 of 3 noun
1
2
: a complete failure : flop
3
slang : a police raid or arrest
Etymology

Noun

from French buste "head and shoulders sculpture," from Italian busto (same meaning), from Latin bustum "tomb"

Verb

an altered form of burst

More from Merriam-Webster on bust

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