bum
bum
I
/ˈbʌm/ noun , pl bums [ count ]
1 chiefly US, informal + disapproving : a person who has no place to live and no job and who asks people for money
Bums [=vagrants] often sleep on the park's benches.
a deserted building where bums [=derelicts] sometimes sleep
2 informal : a person who is lazy or who does something badly
Get to work, you lazy bum!
“He didn't even bother to write.” “What a bum!”
3 : a person who spends a lot of time relaxing and doing something fun rather than working
a beach bum [=a person who spends a lot of time at the beach]
a ski bum
— compare bum, 5
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II
verb , bums, bummed, bum·ming [ + obj ]
informal : to get (something) for free by asking : to ask for and get (something)
Can I bum [=hitch] a ride with you?
She's always bumming cigarettes off people.
bum around (
informal
1 bum around/about or bum around/about (a place) : to spend time relaxing in (a place) instead of working
I spent the whole day just bumming around the house.
2 bum around/about (a place) : to spend time living and traveling in (a place) without a job or much money
After graduation, she bummed around Mexico for a while.
— compare bum, 3
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III
verb , bums, bummed, bum·ming
US informal
1 [ + obj ] : to cause (someone) to feel sad or disappointed
— usually + out
The news really bummed me out. = I was really bummed (out) by the news.
2 always used in progressive tenses [ no obj ] : to feel sad or disappointed about something
She's bumming because she can't go to the concert.
— compare bum, 2
bummed adj [more ~; most ~]
He's pretty bummed about not getting the scholarship.
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IV
adj , always used before a noun
informal
1 : of bad quality
We lost money thanks to your bum [=bad] advice.
bum luck
I got a bum deal on this car. [=this car is worth much less than what I paid for it]
— see also bum rap at rap, 1
2 : not legally acceptable : not valid
He's known for writing/passing bum checks. [=checks that promise money he does not have; checks that bounce]
3 US : injured or damaged
He has a bum knee/ankle/leg. [=his knee/ankle/leg does not function properly, is painful, etc.]
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V
noun , pl bums [ count ]
chiefly Brit informal : the part of the body that you sit on : buttocks
He slipped and fell on his bum. [=behind, backside, bottom]
Get off your bum [=butt] and get to work!
get/put bums on seats
Brit informal : to attract people to see a movie, play, game, etc.
She has the looks and voice that really get/put bums on seats.
— compare bum, 1
