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bum

/bʌm/noun, verb, interjection, adjective

bum is spelled B-U-M: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears 5.6 times per million words in written English, the 10,358th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bum means “The buttocks” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bum is bums.

How many letters and syllables are in bum?

Letters3: B-U-M
Syllables1 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing5.6 times per million words; the 10,358th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How common is bum?

Bum appears 5.6 times per million words in written English, the 10,358th most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce bum?

  • /bʌm/

Bum has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-ca-bum.ogg, EN-AU_ck1_bum.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Forms of bum

  • bums plural, present, singular, he/she/it
  • bumming participle, present
  • bummed participle, past
  • bummer comparative
  • bummest superlative

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does bum mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

  1. 1

    CommonwealthinformalThe buttocks.

    Okay, everyone sit on your bum and try and touch your toes.

  2. 2

    CommonwealthinformalThe anus.

  3. 3

    slangvulgarAn act of anal sex.

    Go for a bum

  4. 4

    colloquialderogatoryA homeless person, usually a man.

  5. 5

    colloquialderogatoryA lazy, incompetent, or annoying person, usually a man.

    Fred is becoming a bum–he’s not even bothering to work more than once a month.

  6. 6

    colloquialA player or racer who often performs poorly.

    Trade him to another team, he’s a bum!

  7. 7

    colloquialA drinking spree.

  8. 8

    colloquialdatedslangA humming noise.

  9. 9

    colloquialobsoleteslangA bumbailiff.

verb

  1. 1

    IrelandUKcolloquialTo sodomize; to engage in anal sex.

  2. 2

    colloquial[with off or (nonstandard) off of] To ask someone to give one (something) for free; to beg for something.

    Can I bum a cigarette off you?

  3. 3

    colloquialTo stay idle and unproductive, like a hobo or vagabond.

    I think I’ll just bum around downtown for a while until dinner.

  4. 4

    UKcolloquialslangTo wet the end of a marijuana cigarette (spliff).

  5. 5

    colloquialslangTo depress; to make unhappy.

  6. 6

    colloquialslangTo make a murmuring or humming sound.

interjection

  1. 1

    IrelandUKAn expression of annoyance.

    (more vulgar)

adjective

  1. 1

    colloquialslangOf poor quality or highly undesirable.

    What kind of bum note was that??

  2. 2

    colloquialslangUnfair.

    The union reps gave us a bum deal!

  3. 3

    colloquialslangInjured and without the possibility of full repair, defective.

    I can’t play football anymore on account of my bum knee.

  4. 4

    colloquialslangUnpleasant or unhappy.

    He had a bum trip on that mescaline.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Bum in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchcul, fesses (informal: buttocks or anus), trou du cul (anus specifically), vagabond (hobo), tocard (player or racer who performs poorly), taper (to beg for something)
GermanHintern, Po, Popo (informal: buttocks or anus), Anus (anus specifically), Obdachloser, Penner (hobo)
Portuguesenalgas, cu, ânus, traseiro, bunda, bumbum (informal: buttocks or anus)
Spanishano, trasero (informal: buttocks or anus), vagabundo, vago (hobo), nalgas (informal: butt(ocks) specifically), atorrante (a good-for-nothing person)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does bum come from?

Attested since the 1300s, as Middle English bom (found in John Trevisa's 1387 Translation of the 'Polychronicon' of Ranulph Higden, "his bom is oute"), of uncertain origin. Sometimes suggested to be a shortening of botme, botom, bottum (“bottom”), but this is contradicted by the fact that bottom is not attested in reference to the buttocks until the late 1700s. Suggested by some old and modern references to be onomatopoeic. Compare also Old Irish, Scottish Gaelic bun (“base, bottom”). The anal sex senses (noun and verb), as well as the adjective (esp.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after bum