butt

1 of 6

noun (1)

ˈbət 

plural butts

1

: buttocks

slipped and fell on his butt

—often used as a euphemism for ass in idiomatic expressions

Get your butt over here.

kick butt

saved our butts

2

: the large or thicker end part of something:

a

: the thicker or handle end of a tool or weapon

the butt of a rifle

b

food : a marbled upper cut of the pork shoulder

called also Boston butt

c

: the base of a plant from which the roots spring

3

a

: an unused remainder (as of a cigarette or cigar)

b

slang : cigarette

4

: the part of a hide or skin corresponding to the animal's back and sides

butt

2 of 6

noun (2)

1

: an object of abuse or ridicule : victim

the butt of all their jokes

2

a

: target

b

butts plural : range sense 5c

shooting butts

c

: a blind for shooting birds

d

: a backstop (such as a mound or bank) for catching missiles shot at a target

3

a

archaic : goal

here is my journey's end, here is my butt

—William Shakespeare

b

obsolete : limit, bound

butt

3 of 6

verb (1)

butted; butting; butts

transitive verb

: to strike or shove with the head or horns

got butted by a goat

butting their horns together

intransitive verb

: to thrust or push headfirst : strike with the head or horns

butt

4 of 6

noun (3)

: a blow or thrust usually with the head or horns

a head butt to the ribs

butt

5 of 6

verb (2)

butted; butting; butts

intransitive verb

: abut

—used with on or against

where the floorboards butt against each other

The apartment building butts up against an old church.

transitive verb

1

: to place end to end or side to side without overlapping

butt the boards together

2

: to trim or square off (something, such as a log) at the end

3

: to reduce (something, such as a cigarette) to an unused remainder by stubbing or stamping : to reduce to a butt (see butt entry 1 sense 3a)

butt

6 of 6

noun (4)

1

: a large cask especially for wine, beer, or water

2

: any of various units of liquid capacity

especially : a measure equal to 108 imperial (see imperial entry 1 sense 4) gallons (491 liters)

Phrases

butt heads

: to come into conflict

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• backside
• behind
• booty [slang]
• bootie
• bottom
• breech
• bum
• buns
• buttocks
• caboose
• can
• cheeks
• derriere
• derrière
• duff
• fanny
• fundament
• hams
• haunches
• heinie [slang]
• hunkers
• keister [slang]
• keester
• nates
• posterior
• rear
• rear end
• rump
• seat
• tail
• tail end
• tush [slang]

Noun (3)

• derision
• jest
• joke
• laughingstock
• mark
• mock
• mockery
• sport
• target

Verb (2)

• abut
• adjoin
• border (on)
• flank
• fringe
• join
• march (with)
• neighbor
• skirt
• touch
• verge (on)

Noun (4)

• barrel
• cask
• firkin
• hogshead
• keg
• kilderkin
• pipe
• puncheon
• rundlet
• runlet
• tun

Examples of butt in a Sentence

Noun (1)

park your butts in the seats and keep quiet, or I'm turning this car around

Noun (3)

the social outcast got tired of being the butt of everyone's jokes

usually the U.S. Congress is the butt of the radio commentator's scathing wit

Verb (2)

our property butts on a swamp

Noun (4)

a butt of hard cider that we had pressed ourselves

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The snapper begins by setting his feet wide and hunkering down, making sure his butt isn’t too high or too low. —David Wharton, Los Angeles Times, 16 Dec. 2024

My butt was covered in ornaments, including large baubles and pointy wooden edges. —Elise Taylor, Vogue, 16 Dec. 2024

Verb

On November 10th, after the San Francisco 49ers’ defensive end Nick Bosa sacked Baker Mayfield during the 49ers’ game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, another defensive lineman, Leonard Floyd, came over to Bosa and gently butted helmets. —Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2024

Jess McAllen takes a deep dive into the recent history of therapeutic approaches to mental illness, AI therapy chatbots, and what happens when the logical rigor of technology butts up against the chaotic reality of human brains. —Michelle Weber, Longreads, 14 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English; probably akin to Middle English buttok buttock, Low German butt blunt

Noun (2)

Middle English, partly from Middle French but target, of Germanic origin; akin to Old Norse būtr log, Low German butt blunt; partly from Middle French bute goal, target, mound, from but target

Verb (1) and Noun (3)

Middle English, from Anglo-French buter, boter, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German bōzan to beat — more at beat

Verb (2)

partly from butt entry 1, partly from butt entry 2

Noun (4)

Middle English, from Anglo-French but, bout, from Old Occitan bota, from Late Latin buttis

First Known Use

Noun (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2d

Verb (1)

12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun (3)

1600, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

1634, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun (4)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing butt

• Boston butt
• bubble butt
• butt dial
• butt heads
• butt hinge
• butt in
• butt joint
• butt naked
• butt out
• butt shaft
• butt weld
• get off one's butt
• head butt
• kick butt
• kick someone's butt
• pain in the ass/butt
• water butt

Kids Definition

butt

1 of 4 verb

ˈbət 

: to strike or thrust with the head or horns

butt

2 of 4 noun

: a blow or thrust with the head or horns

butt

3 of 4 noun

: a person who is treated badly or is made fun of

the butt of a joke

butt

4 of 4 noun

1

: buttock sense 2a

—often used in idiomatic expressions

saved our butts

get your butt over here

2

: the thicker or bottom end of something

the butt of a rifle

3

: an unused remainder

a cigarette butt