to bust a move
11
8.9
- phrasal verb
- /bʌst ə muːv/
- Informal
:
bailar
- He always knows how to bust a move when his favorite song comes on at the club.
- just bust a move
- let’s bust a move
- yeah! bust a move
Examples
-
Yeah, why don't you go out and bust a move.
-
At the party, everyone gathered around to watch as she started to bust a move on the dance floor.
-
Show 'em you can bust a move.
-
I gotta bust a move
-
Bust a move, green machine.
-
Let's bust a move, and bust a rhyme, and catch some ghosts.
-
Better bust a move.
-
Look like you're about to bust a move right through those drawers.
Fiction book (2000) -
He walks with a solemnity that befits his high stature, but he can also bust a move with the best of them.
Academic text (2012) -
She was the captain of her hip hop team in high school, so don't be surprised when she starts busting a move to Tyga unexpectedly.
Blog text (13)
Synonyms
579
1.0
To move quickly and lightly from side to side or up and down
28
7.5
Dance energetically to lively upbeat music
15
4.1
To move with high, lively steps in a playful way
10
7.7
To shake the body quickly from side to side as a dance move
7
7.6
To dance in a lively, energetic way to jazz or swing music
6
7.4
To walk in a confident, smooth way to attract attention
6
8.4
To dance with a lot of energy and have fun
6
6.1
To move your body to music in a lively way
3
9.9
To dance in a lively, playful way
2
3.9
To start dancing at a party or club
1
4.2
To do energetic acrobatic street dance moves to hip-hop music
1
8.8
To dance in a lively way to music
1
9.0
To dance with showy, energetic movements
1
8.7
A lively, skilled dance that shows energy and enthusiasm
Dance quickly and happily to the beat of music
To dance with great energy and make people excited
Move your feet in time with music as a dance
To move or dance quickly toward a place
To do energetic street dance moves with flips and spins
To perform a street dance with quick acrobatic moves to hip-hop music
Antonyms
How Energetic
Surface Forms
Morphology
The word 'move' clearly signals physical motion, so a learner might guess the phrase has to do with movement; however 'bust' here is informal/slang meaning 'do' or 'perform' and the specific sense 'dance energetically' is a conventionalized, slangy extension. Because part of the meaning (movement) is recoverable from the constituents but the precise dance sense depends on idiomatic slang usage, the expression is only partially predictable.
Etymology
Bust a move comes from parties and clubs where people would suddenly bust into a dance move. That picture of someone breaking into a lively step explains why it now means 'to dance energetically' or 'start dancing'.