American Heritage Dictionary Entry: butt HOW TO USE THE DICTIONARY To look up an entry in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, use the search window above. For best results, after typing in the word, click on the “Search” button instead of using the “enter” key. Some compound words (like bus rapid transit, dog whistle, or identity theft) don’t appear on the drop-down list when you type them in the search bar. For best results with compound words, place a quotation mark before the compound word in the search window. guide to the dictionary THE USAGE PANEL The Usage Panel is a group of nearly 200 prominent scholars, creative writers, journalists, diplomats, and others in occupations requiring mastery of language. Annual surveys have gauged the acceptability of particular usages and grammatical constructions. The Panelists NEED HELP SOLVING A CROSSWORD PUZZLE? Go to our Crossword Puzzle Solver and type in the letters that you know, and the Solver will produce a list of possible solutions. -- AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY APP The new American Heritage Dictionary app is now available for iOS and Android. THE AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY BLOG The articles in our blog examine new words, revised definitions, interesting images from the fifth edition, discussions of usage, and more. OPEN DICTIONARY PROJECT Share your ideas for new words and new meanings of old words! Start Sharing Now! -- See word lists from the best-selling 100 Words Series! Find out more! INTERESTED IN DICTIONARIES? Check out the Dictionary Society of North America at http://www.dictionarysociety.com butt 1 (bŭt) Share: Tweet v. butt·ed, butt·ing, butts v.tr. To hit or push against with the head or horns; ram. v.intr. 1. To hit or push something with the head or horns. 2. To project forward or out. n. A push or blow with the head or horns.Phrasal Verbs: butt in 1. To interfere or meddle in other people's affairs. 2. To interrupt the conversation or activity of other people. 3. To move into a line of people or things out of turn. butt out Slang To disengage from a matter involving another person. [Middle English butten, from Old French bouter, to strike, of Germanic origin; see bhau- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] butter n. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved. butt 2 (bŭt) Share: Tweet tr. & intr.v. butt·ed, butt·ing, butts To join or be joined end to end; abut. n. 1. A butt joint. 2. A butt hinge. [Middle English butten, from Anglo-Norman butter (variant of Old French bouter; see BUTT1) and from but, end; see BUTT4.] The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved. butt 3 (bŭt) Share: Tweet n. 1. One that serves as an object of ridicule or contempt: I was the butt of their jokes. 2. a. A target, as in archery or riflery. b. butts A target range. c. An obstacle behind a target for stopping the shot. 3. An embankment or hollow used as a blind by hunters of wildfowl. 4. a. Archaic A goal. b. Obsolete A bound; a limit. [Middle English butte, target, from Old French, from but, goal, end, target; see BUTT4.] The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved. butt 4 (bŭt) Share: Tweet n. 1. The larger or thicker end of an object: the butt of a rifle. 2. a. An unburned end, as of a cigarette. b. Informal A cigarette. 3. A short or broken remnant; a stub. 4. Informal The buttocks; the rear end. adv. Slang Very. Used as an intensive: butt ugly; butt expensive. [Middle English butte, from Old French but, end, of Germanic origin.] The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved. butt 5 (bŭt) Share: Tweet n. 1. A large cask. 2. A unit of volume equal to two hogsheads, usually the equivalent of 126 US gallons (about 477 liters). [Middle English, from Old French boute, from Vulgar Latin *butta, from Late Latin buttis; see BOTTLE.] The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved. Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices: Indo-European Roots Semitic Roots The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots. 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