I. butt 1 /bʌt/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Sense 1-2, 4-6: Date: 1400-1500 ; Origin: Origin unknown. ]
[ Sense 3: Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: but 'target, goal, end' ]
[ Sense 7: Date: 1400-1500 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: botte ]
[ Sense 8: Date: 1500-1600 ; Origin: ⇨ ↑ butt 2 ]
1 . PART OF YOUR BODY American English informal the part of your body that you sit on SYN buttocks :
a baby’s soft little butt
⇨ be a pain in the butt at ↑ pain 1 (3)
2 . CIGARETTE the end of a cigarette after most of it has been smoked
3 . be the butt of something to be the person or thing that other people often make jokes about:
Paul quickly became the butt of everyone’s jokes.
4 . GUN the thick end of the handle of a gun:
a rifle butt
5 . get your butt in/out/over etc American English spoken used to rudely tell someone to go somewhere or do something:
Kevin, get your butt over here!
6 . work/play etc your butt off American English spoken to work, play etc very hard:
I worked my butt off in college.
7 . CONTAINER British English a large round container for collecting or storing liquids:
a rainwater butt
8 . HITTING WITH YOUR HEAD the act of hitting someone with your head
II. butt 2 BrE AmE verb [intransitive and transitive]
[ Date: 1400-1500 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: boter 'to push' ]
1 . to hit or push against something or someone with your head
2 . if an animal butts someone, it hits them with its horns
butt in phrasal verb
1 . to interrupt a conversation rudely:
Stop butting in!
2 . to become involved in a private situation that does not concern you
butt in on
They don’t want outsiders butting in on their decision-making.
butt out phrasal verb especially American English spoken
used to tell someone rudely that you do not want them to be involved in a conversation or situation:
This has nothing to do with you, so just butt out!