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butt 1 (bŭt)
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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.]

butter n.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
butt 2 (bŭt)
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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)
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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)
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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)
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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.