bust

B1 Topic:Economics & Markets

Also spelled B-u-u-ust and bustin

US /bʌst/ See IPA manual

Freq #2960

Meanings

1

verb
To break something, or to break open suddenly and forcefully.

He busted the lock trying to open the door.
2

noun
A woman's chest, or the measurement around it.

The dress was a little tight around the bust.
3

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

A marble bust of the poet stood in the library.
4

noun
A complete failure.

The party was a total bust because no one came.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to break something, or to... burst break

4 noun · a complete failure. flop

Word family

Forms bustingbusts

Derived forms ball-bustbeer-bustbelly-bustingboom-and-bustbunker-bustingbust-downbust-outbustablebusterbustheadbustlikebustline

Related forms bustier

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

drug bust
an informal term for a police operation that seizes illegal drugs

Noun + noun

Simplified etymology

Bust entered English in the mid-17th century from Italian busto, a sculptural term ultimately derived from Latin bustum, “sepulchral monument.”

Etymology

Borrowed from French buste, from Italian busto (“torso, upper body”), from Latin bustum (“funeral monument, tomb," originally "funeral pyre, place where corpses are burned”). Perhaps shortened from Latin ambustum, neuter of ambustus (“scorched”), past participle of ambūrō (“burn all over, scorch”), from ambi- (“around”) + ūrō (“to burn”).

*h₁ews- Proto-Indo-European busto Italian bustum Latin ambustum Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Economics & Markets Actions & Processes

External links

# bust

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** verb, noun
**IPA (US):** /bʌst/
**Frequency rank:** 2960

## Meanings
1. To break something, or to break open suddenly and forcefully.
2. A woman's chest, or the measurement around it.
3. A sculpture of a person's head, shoulders, and upper chest.
4. A complete failure.

## Examples
- He busted the lock trying to open the door.
- The dress was a little tight around the bust.
- A marble bust of the poet stood in the library.
- The party was a total bust because no one came.

## Derived Forms
- ball-bust
- beer-bust
- belly-busting
- boom-and-bust
- bunker-busting
- bust-down
- bust-out
- bustable
- buster
- busthead
- bustlike
- bustline

## Related Forms
- bustier

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *h₁ews-
- Root: busto
- Root: bustum
- Root: ambustum

## Etymology
Borrowed from French buste, from Italian busto (“torso, upper body”), from Latin bustum (“funeral monument, tomb," originally "funeral pyre, place where corpses are burned”). Perhaps shortened from Latin ambustum, neuter of ambustus (“scorched”), past participle of ambūrō (“burn all over, scorch”), from ambi- (“around”) + ūrō (“to burn”).

## AI Etymology
Bust was borrowed from French buste, from Italian busto (“torso, upper body”), from Latin bustum (“funeral monument, tomb," originally "funeral pyre, place where corpses are burned”). Perhaps shortened from Latin ambustum, neuter of ambustus (“scorched”), past participle of ambūrō (“burn all over, scorch”), from ambi- (“around”) + ūrō (“to burn”).

## Topics
- Economics & Markets
- Actions & Processes

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