bust

[[t]bʌ̱st[/t]]

busts, busting, busted

(The form bust is used as the present tense of the verb, and can also be used as the past tense and past participle.)

1) VERB If you bust something, you break it or damage it so badly that it cannot be used. [INFORMAL]

[V n] They will have to bust the door to get him out.

2) VERB: usu passive If someone is busted, the police arrest them. [INFORMAL]

[be V-ed] They were busted for possession of cannabis.

3) VERB If police bust a place, they go to it in order to arrest people who are doing something illegal. [INFORMAL]

[V n] ...police success in busting UK-based drug factories.

N-COUNT

Bust is also a noun.

Six tons of cocaine were seized last week in Panama's biggest drug bust.

4) ADJ A bust company or fund has no money left and has been forced to close down. [INFORMAL]

It is taxpayers who will pay most of the bill for bailing out bust banks.

5) PHRASE: V inflects If a company goes bust, it loses so much money that it is forced to close down. [INFORMAL]

...a Swiss company which went bust last May.

6) N-COUNT: oft N of n A bust is a statue of the head and shoulders of a person.

...a bronze bust of the Queen.

7) N-COUNT You can use bust to refer to a woman's breasts, especially when you are describing their size.

Good posture also helps your bust look bigger.

8) to bust a gut → see gut