Where does “bum” come from?
Bum derives from German Bummler, formed from the German verb bummeln with the German suffix -er, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European wer-.
bum (English): The buttocks; The anus; To sodomize; to engage in...
Definitions
- The buttocks; The anus; To sodomize; to engage in...
Ancestry of “bum”, step by step
bum traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via German Bummler
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | Bummler | stroller; laggard; idler, loafer |
| 2 | German | -er | Forms agent nouns etc. from verbs, suffixed to... |
| 3 | Old High German | -āri | used to form agent nouns |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | -ārī | -er |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | -ārijaz | -er |
| 6 | Latin | -ārius | er |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | *-āzios | Forms relational adjectives to nouns (and rarely numerals) |
via Middle English bom
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | bom | — |