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Glite Dictionary
to bust butt

to bust butt

9 9.4
To work very hard to finish a task
  • phrasal verb
  • Informal
translation icon : trabajar duro
  • And here you are busting your butt, paying your taxes, doing what you're told to do in school, and you work hard for money.
  • bust my butt to get
  • bust your butt all day
  • bust my butt trying

And I see his workers and they bust their butt in the middle of the summer.

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Examples

  • You know, I busted my butt for four years to get into that place.

    Outside Providence (1999)

  • The parents have to bust their butts to pay off the second car and fancy clothes.

    Blog text (28)

  • I work, I bust my butt to find resources.

  • And I see his workers and they bust their butt in the middle of the summer.

    The Rich Dad Channel

  • Why bust your butt for a nobody?

    Fiction book (1999)

  • Dad used to bust his butt getting those things wholesale.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • I work for a non-profit, and yes, we bust our butts.

    Blog text (27)

  • We are busting our butts for them to pay attention and listen to our solutions.

    Blog text (15)

  • I'm tired of busting my butt for this company, only to be passed over when promotions are being handed out!

    Suburban Commando (1991)

  • Every day, I bust my butt to finish my assignments on time.

Synonyms

to work one's ass off
vsto bust butt
  • Offensive
13 8.4

Try very hard for a long time to do something

is equally extreme but uses less crude phrasing
to bust ass
vsto bust butt
  • NSFW
1 9.1

To work very hard to finish something

means the same but differs mainly in wording
to put one's shoulder into
vsto bust butt
  • Informal
1 6.8

To work very hard and use a lot of energy

refers to extreme effort that often implies exhaustion
to work to the bone
vsto bust butt
  • Informal
6.0

To do very hard, long tasks until you are very tired

means extreme effort but not focused on prolonged weariness
to break one's back
vsto bust butt
  • Informal
6.0

To work very hard at something until you are very tired

describes very hard working without stating physical collapse

Antonyms

to take it easy
  • Informal
572 2.5

Relax and avoid doing too much or worrying

to slack off
  • Informal
3 3.9

To become less strong or busy

How Hard

to work one's ass off
  • Offensive
13 8.4
to bust butt
  • Informal
9 9.4
to bust ass
  • NSFW
1 9.1
work
∞ 1.0
to loaf
7 6.2

Surface Forms

bust butt infinitive
busted butt past
busted butt past participle
busting butt present participle
busts butt third person singular

Morphology

bustin + butt

Although 'bust' can mean to break or exert force and 'butt' is a body part, the idiom 'bust (one's) butt' meaning 'to work extremely hard' is colloquial and not a straightforward compositional combination of those meanings. A B1 learner who knows the literal words would more likely infer physical damage or awkwardness than the idiomatic sense of strenuous effort, so the expression is unpredictable from its parts.

Etymology

The phrasal verb bust butt comes from a simple image: bust means 'break' and butt means 'rear', so you can picture someone working so hard they nearly 'bust their butt' for real. That's why bust butt means 'to work extremely hard'.