bust2

verb (past and past participle busted or bust)

• 1break, split, or burst:they bust the tunnel wide open figurativethe film bust every box office record [no object]:the colour control had bust
• [no object] (bust up) (of a group or couple) separate, typically after a quarrel: now they’ve bust up, she won’t inherit the house
• violently disrupt:men hired to bust up union rallies
• North American strike violently:Tamara bust him in the eye
• [no object] (bust out) escape:she busted out of prison
• [no object] (in blackjack and similar card games) exceed the score of 21, so losing one’s stake.

• 2chiefly North American (of the police) raid or search (premises where illegal activity is suspected):my flat got busted
• arrest:two roadies were busted for drugs
• (be/get busted) be caught in the act of doing something wrong:I sneaked up on them and told them they were busted
• chiefly US reduce (a soldier) to a lower rank; demote:he was busted to private

noun

• 1a period of economic difficulty or depression:the boom was followed by the present bust

• 2a raid or arrest by the police:a drug bust

• 3a worthless thing:cynics remain convinced the political process is a bust

• 4chiefly North American a violent blow:a bust on the snout

adjective

• 1British damaged or broken:the vacuum cleaner’s bust

• 2bankrupt:six of their sponsors have gone bust