bun

¹ American  

[buhn] / bʌn /

noun

1. any of a wide variety of variously shaped bread rolls, usually leavened and slightly sweetened or plain, sometimes containing spices, dried currants, etc.

2. hair gathered into a round coil or knot at the nape of the neck or on top of the head in certain coiffures.

3. Slang. buns, the buttocks.

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bun ² American  

[buhn] / bʌn /

idioms

1. have a bun on, to be intoxicated.

   Everyone at the party seemed to have a bun on.

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BUN ³ American  

abbreviation

1. blood urea nitrogen: the concentration of nitrogen in the blood in the form of urea, indicating kidney function.

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bun British  

/ bʌn /

noun

1. a small roll, similar to bread but usually containing sweetening, currants, spices, etc

2. any of various types of small round sweet cakes

3. a hairstyle in which long hair is gathered into a bun shape at the back of the head

4. slang to be pregnant

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Etymology

Origin of bun¹

1325–75; Middle English bunne, possibly of Romance origin; buñuelo ( def. )

Origin of bun²

First recorded in 1900–05; of uncertain origin

Origin of BUN³

First recorded in 1915–20

Explanation

A bun is a small roll, usually made of wheat flour and baked in an oven. You might bake a batch of buns for a breakfast treat on Sunday mornings. Some people celebrate spring or the Easter holidays by making hot cross buns, sweet rolls with currants or raisins and light frosting. Because buns are commonly small and round, the hairstyle that involves a tight coil of hair on the top or back of the head is also called a bun. The origin is probably the French buignete, "a fritter," which had the unpleasant original meaning of "a boil" or "a skin swelling."

Example Sentences

She ended up wearing her hair in a visible bun as a compromise, the complaint states.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026

The chicken Parmesan sliders are called Chicky Chicky Parm Parm and have the American Express Centurion emblazoned on the bun.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 4, 2026

Undo the tight, slicked back bun and bring in halo dyed hair, dark eyeliner and the piercing she did herself on the inside of her upper lip.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 5, 2026

She mocked Paul Thomas Anderson’s award season favorite “One Battle After Another” by calling it “one man bun after another.”

From Salon • Jan. 12, 2026

At his side, my mother, wearing her gray-streaked braids in a high bun, supports him by the elbow as they finally reach the landing.

From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray

Related Words

• bread
• doughnut
• muffin
• pastry
• scone