bust

[ buhst ]

/ bʌst /

noun

a sculptured, painted, drawn, or engraved representation of the upper part of the human figure, especially a portrait sculpture showing only the head and shoulders of the subject.

the chest or breast, especially a woman's bosom.

Origin of bust

1685–95; < French buste < Italian busto, probably < Latin būstum grave mound, tomb, literally, funeral pyre, ashes; presumably by association with the busts erected over graves

Words nearby bust

busra, buss, busse-buschke disease, bussell, busses, bust, bust a gut, bust one's ass, bust-up, bustamante, bustard

Definition for bust (2 of 2)

bust ²

[ buhst ]

/ bʌst /

verb (used without object)

Informal.

to burst.
to go bankrupt.
to collapse from the strain of making a supreme effort: She was determined to make straight A's or bust.

Cards.

Draw Poker. to fail to make a flush or straight by one card.
Blackjack. to draw cards exceeding the count of 21.

verb (used with object)

Informal.

to burst.
to bankrupt; ruin financially.

to demote, especially in military rank or grade: He was busted from sergeant to private three times.

to tame; break: to bust a bronco.

Slang.

to place under arrest: The gang was busted and put away on narcotics charges.
to subject to a police raid: The bar has been busted three times for selling drinks to minors.

Informal.

to hit.
to break; fracture: She fell and busted her arm.

noun

a failure.

Informal. a hit; sock; punch: He got a bust in the nose before he could put up his hands.

a sudden decline in the economic conditions of a country, marked by an extreme drop in stock-market prices, business activity, and employment; depression.

Slang.

an arrest.
a police raid.

Informal. a drinking spree; binge.

Cards.

a very weak hand.
Bridge. a hand lacking the potential to take a single trick.

adjective

Informal. bankrupt; broke.

Verb Phrases

bust up, Informal.

to break up; separate: Sam and his wife busted up a year ago.
to damage or destroy: Soldiers got in a fight and busted up the bar.

Origin of bust

1755–65; variant of burst, by loss of r before s, as in ass², bass², passel, etc.

usage note for bust

Historically bust is derived from a dialect pronunciation of burst and is related to it much as cuss is related to curse. Bust is both a noun and a verb and has a wide range of meanings for both uses. Many are slang or informal. A few, as “a decline in economic conditions, depression,” are standard.

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH bust

burst burst (see usage note at the current entry)

BEHIND THE PHRASE

What does or bust mean?

The phrase or bust is used when someone is pursuing an end no matter what, even if they fail trying. Saying New York City or bust, for example, means someone is doing absolutely everything to go there.

How is or bust pronounced?

[ awr buhst ]

Where does or bust come from?

The phrase or bust may be associated with hitchhikers who’d write it on the signs they’d hold on the side of the highway while waiting for someone to offer them a ride (e.g., Vegas or bust), but the expression was apparently first popularized in the Colorado gold rush of the mid-1800s.

Following the discovery of gold in what is now Englewood, Colorado, people with little or nothing to lose began heading to an area of the state known as Pike’s Peak Country hoping to strike it rich. Around the 1850–60s, some of these dreamers began using the phrase Pike’s Peak or bust as they boarded up their homes and headed west through unforgiving weather and terrain—all for that sweet, sweet gold.

These gold-seekers didn’t invent the phrase, though. It’s recorded as early as the 1830s. Bust itself is a variant of burst, and or bust implies that one will violently break down or fall to pieces before giving up on their goal.

During the 2016 Democratic primaries, some die-hard supporters of the progressive Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders started an effort called Bernie or Bust. Some of these people pledged that they would not vote for Hillary Clinton if she won the Democratic nomination. Instead, they would write in Sanders, vote for a third-party candidate, or not vote.

How is or bust used in real life?

The phrase or bust follows the object of one’s ambition, such as a location or accomplishment (e.g., Austin or bust or 4.0 GPA or bust).

Or bust is often still used in the context of a trip, especially road trips. Nowadays it’s mostly used for enthusiasm and not meant to suggest that not arriving at the intended location is an actual possibility.

Fort Bend or Bust! Go Dogs! #ALLIN #defendandprotect #thisisus pic.twitter.com/e5n6gSOFJR

— Magnolia Girls Hoops (@MagnoliaGBB) November 15, 2018

The phrase is also often used outside the realm of travel, and is meant to suggest that there is only one option and way forward, that anything else is defeat or failure (e.g., Our team is going to the Super Bowl or bust).

More examples of or bust:

“It’s win or bust for both Donegal and Roscommon at The Hyde after their opening Super Eights defeats and Bonner was making sure he had his troops rallied ahead of the long trip home to the north-west.”

—Michael Scully, Irish Mirror, July 2018

Example sentences from the Web for bust

Nobody ever says they want to become a cop so they can bust people for urinating in public or drinking alcohol on their stoop.

Shot Down During the NYPD Slowdown |Michael Daly |January 7, 2015 |DAILY BEAST
And every day, we bust our asses to continue “making it,” but we most certainly have not “made it.”

How Much Money Does a Band Really Make on Tour? |Jack Conte |December 8, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
In writing my debut novel, The Home Place, I had to bust some Western mythology to tell the truth.

Book Bag: Gritty Stories From the Real Montana |Carrie La Seur |October 2, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Think of it as the Jersey Shore exception, where you can act like a brutish goon and the first bust is essentially a do-over.

Ray Rice Should Have Remembered His 'Kindness' Anti-Bullying Wristband |Michael Daly |September 10, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

Instead, Beck returned home and made a life-changing decision to bust out of the closet.

The Woman Stuck in a Navy SEAL's Body |Nina Strochlic |September 4, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Variety 8:—Similar to the last, but back of bust is some distance from inner oval line.

The Die Varieties of the Nesbitt Series of United States Envelopes |Victor M. Berthold
With that John begun to stare, and at last he bust out a larfin again.

Highlife in New York: a series of letters to Mr. Zephariah Slick, |Ann S. Stephens
Then I undertook the bust of my young sister Rgina, who had, alas!

My Double Life |Sarah Bernhardt
Moreover, if he's so ugly as all that, you won't be so unhappy as you were last year when I was doing Mora's bust.

The Nabob, Volume 1 (of 2) |Alphonse Daudet
But they say he was a bust anyway—just a morning-glory—and didn't know his luck.

Winner Take All |Larry Evans

British Dictionary definitions for bust (1 of 2)

bust ¹

/ (bʌst) /

noun

the chest of a human being, esp a woman's bosom

a sculpture of the head, shoulders, and upper chest of a person

Word Origin for bust

C17: from French buste, from Italian busto a sculpture, of unknown origin

British Dictionary definitions for bust (2 of 2)

bust ²

/ (bʌst) informal /

verb busts, busting, busted or bust

to burst or break

to make or become bankrupt

(tr) (of the police) to raid, search, or arrest the girl was busted for drugs

(tr) US and Canadian to demote, esp in military rank

(tr) US and Canadian to break or tame (a horse, etc)

(tr) mainly US to punch; hit

bust a gut See gut (def. 9)

noun

a raid, search, or arrest by the police

mainly US a punch; hit

US and Canadian a failure, esp a financial one; bankruptcy

a drunken party

adjective

broken

bankrupt

go bust to become bankrupt

Word Origin for bust

C19: from a dialect pronunciation of burst

Idioms and Phrases with bust

bust

In addition to the idioms beginning with bust

bust a gut
bust one's ass

also see:

break (bust) one's ass
go broke (bust)

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

bust

noun

Origin of bust

Words nearby bust

Definition for bust (2 of 2)

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

noun

adjective

Verb Phrases

Origin of bust

usage note for bust

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH bust

BEHIND THE PHRASE

What does or bust mean?

Where does or bust come from?

How is or bust used in real life?

Example sentences from the Web for bust

British Dictionary definitions for bust (1 of 2)

noun

Word Origin for bust

British Dictionary definitions for bust (2 of 2)

verb busts, busting, busted or bust

noun

adjective

Word Origin for bust

Idioms and Phrases with bust

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

bust

noun

Origin of bust

Words nearby bust

Definition for bust (2 of 2)

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

noun

adjective

Verb Phrases

Origin of bust

usage note for bust

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH bust

BEHIND THE PHRASE

What does or bust mean?

Where does or bust come from?

How is or bust used in real life?

Words related to bust

Example sentences from the Web for bust

British Dictionary definitions for bust (1 of 2)

noun

Word Origin for bust

British Dictionary definitions for bust (2 of 2)

verb busts, busting, busted or bust

noun

adjective

Word Origin for bust

Idioms and Phrases with bust