bust

bust · noun, verb, adjective

imported

Definitions

noun, verb, adjective

  1. 1.

    A sculpture of a person's head, shoulders, and chest.

  2. 2.

    [informal]To break or smash something.

  3. 3.

    [informal]Broken or not working.

  4. 4.

    [informal]Bankrupt or broke.

  5. 5.

    [informal]To arrest someone.

  6. 6.

    A woman's chest or breasts.

  7. 7.

    [informal]To catch someone doing something wrong.

  8. 8.

    [informal]A police raid or arrest.

  9. 9.

    [informal]A failure or fiasco.

Forms

plural: busts

Phrases & expressions

  • •
    bust a gut — To work extremely hard; to laugh very hard.
  • •
    bust someone's chops — To tease or harass someone.
  • •
    go bust — To become bankrupt.
  • •
    boom or bust — Periods of prosperity alternating with decline.

Related words

Antonyms: boom, success
See also: arrest, busted, busting, sculpture
Synonyms: arrest, bosom, chest, raid, sculpture

Etymology

As a sculpture term: from French buste, from Italian busto, possibly from Latin bustum ("funeral monument"). The informal meanings developed in American English in the 19th century as a variant of "burst."