Standard Lemma guide

arse

intj · noun · verb · 9 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

Received-Pronunciation: /ɑːs/
Australian, New-Zealand: /ɐːs/
Ireland, Scotland: /aɹs/
Ireland, Scotland: /äːɹs/
Canada, US: /ɑɹs/
rhymes with -ɑː(ɹ)s
UK: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Canada: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET: AA1 R S Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

intj

Meaning 1

An expression of frustration.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: Commonwealth, vulgar

Examples

(euphemistic)

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: bum

Antonyms: none provided

noun

Meaning 2

A person's buttocks; the bottom, the backside. Also: the anus; the rectum.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: Commonwealth, vulgar

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: 'tocks, arse, arse cheeks, ass, ass cheeks, back, backside, batty, behind, blessed assurance, booty, botty, bottom, bum, bum cheeks, buns, butt, butt cheeks, buttocks, caboose, cheeks, derriere, dicky, fanny, fourth point of contact, gluteus maximus, glutes, gooseberry-grinder, gyatt, heinie, hiney, hinderlin, hurdies, jacksie, keester, keister, moon, moneymaker, nates, nether cheeks, patootie, peach, posterior, postern, rear, rear end, rump, seat, sit upon, tail, toches, tush, tushie, a-hole, anus, arsehole, asscunt, asshole, asspussy, back alley, back door, back passage, balloon knot, batty hole, bootyhole, brown eye, browneye, bumhole, bung-hole, bunghole, bungus, butthole, buttonhole, chocolate channel, chocolate starfish, chuff, cinnamon ring, clacka, clacker, cornhole, craphole, cumhole, dinger, ding, dock, dookie hole, dung funnel, exit hole, fartbox, farthole, freckle, fuckhole, fudge tunnel, fundament, Gary Glitter, gump stump, Hershey highway, jacksy, leather cheerio, love hole, other end, poop chute, pooper, poophole, rear exit, rectum, ringpiece, rosebud, rusty sheriff's badge, shithole, shitter, sluthole, smelly freckle, starfish, stinkhole, tewel, tooter, tradesman's entrance, turd cutter, vent, wazoo, where the sun don't shine, windpipe, ying-yang

Antonyms: none provided

noun

Meaning 3

A stupid, pompous, arrogant, mean or despicable person.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, derogatory, slang, vulgar

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

noun

Meaning 4

Used in similes to express something bad or unpleasant.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: slang, uncountable, vulgar

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

noun

Meaning 5

A person; the self; (reflexively) oneself or one's person, chiefly their body; (by extension) one's personal safety, or figuratively one's job, prospects, etc.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, metonymically, slang, vulgar

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

noun

Meaning 6

Abbreviation of arylsulfatase E, an enzyme, deficiencies in which are associated with abnormalities in cartilage and bone development.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: abbreviation, alt-of

Topics: biochemistry, biology, chemistry, microbiology, natural-sciences, physical-sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

verb

Meaning 7

To be silly, act stupid or mess around.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: Commonwealth, intransitive, slang, vulgar

Examples

Stop arsing around!

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

noun

Meaning 8

vulgar slang for anus

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: arsehole, asshole, bunghole

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: anus

noun

Meaning 9

the fleshy part of the human body that you sit on

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

he deserves a good kick in the butt
are you going to sit on your fanny and do nothing?

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: buttocks, nates, butt, backside, bum, buns, can, fundament, hindquarters, hind end, keister, posterior, prat, rear, rear end, rump, stern, seat, tail, tail end, tooshie, tush, bottom, behind, derriere, fanny, ass

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: body part

History

Etymology

From Middle English ars, ers, from Old English ærs, ears, from Proto-West Germanic *ars, from Proto-Germanic *arsaz (compare Dutch aars and German Arsch), from Proto-Indo-European *h1órsos (“backside, buttocks”).

Word forms

Inflections and variants

ass — alternative, US
arses — plural
arses — present, singular, third-person
arsing — participle, present
arsed — participle, past
arsed — past

Word family

Derived and related words

Derived: arse about face, arse about tit, arse antlers, arse bandit, arse biscuit, arse breath, arsebreath, arsecheek, arsecheeks, arse cheeks, arseclown, arse-clown, arse-crack, arse crack, arsecunt, arse end, arse end of nowhere, arseface, arse-fuck, arsefucker, arseful, arsehat, arsehead, arsehole, arseholedom, arseholery, arseholic, arsehood, arse in a sling, arse is right out of 'er, arse-kisser, arseless, arse licker, arse-licker, arse-licking, arse lift, arse like a Japanese flag, arseling, arseload, arselong, arseman, arsemonkey, arsemunch, arsemuncher, arseness, arse over head, arse over teakettle, arse over tip, arse over tit, arsesmart, arse-up, arsewash, arse-wash, arsewipe, arsey, arsy, arsing, arsle, ask my arse, badarse, bare-arse, barearse, barse, beat one's arse, beat someone's arse, bet one's arse, bite in the arse, blow smoke up someone's arse, bother one's arse, bottle-arse, bring one's arse to an anchor, bring one's arse to anchor, bust one's arse, cake and arse party, cake-and-arse party, candy-arse, care a rat's arse, cauldron arse, cheap-arse Tuesday, clever arse, cold as a well-digger's arse, cottage cheese arse, could eat the arse out of a low flying duck, da arse is gone right out of 'er, die in the arse, die on one's arse, duck-arsed, duck's arse, dumbarse, face like a slapped arse, face like a smacked arse, fart-arse, get one's arse in gear, give a rat's arse, gnat's arse, grassy arse, half-arse, half-arsed, hang an arse, hanging out of one's arse, hard-arse, in a pig's arse, jackarse, kick arse, kick-arse, kick arse and take names, kick someone's arse, kick up the arse, kiss arse, kiss my arse, kiss someone's arse, know one's arse from one's elbow, lardarse, laugh one's arse off, lazy-arse, my arse, not hit a cow's arse with a banjo, one's arse off, open-arse, pain in one's arse, pain in the arse, pop a cap in someone's arse, pull one's finger out of one's arse, pull out of one's arse, short-arse, shortarse, sit on one's arse, smart arse, smart-arse, someone's arse off, suck arse, take it up the arse, talk out of one's arse, the arse, the arse has gone clean out of 'er, the arse has gone out of 'er, the arse has gone right out of 'er, the arse is clean out of 'er, the arse is gone right out of 'er, the arse is out of 'er, the law is an arse, think the sun shines out of someone's arse, tight-arse, tight as a duck's arse, tits and arse, two cheeks of the same arse, up the arse, whip-arse, work someone's arse off, your arse, arse about, arse around, arse up, candy-arsed, can't be arsed

Related: slang, cant, jargon, lingo, argot, patois, vernacular

Language history

Descendants

Sranan Tongo: lasi

Semantic map

Other relationships

Hypernyms: anus, body part

Holonyms: torso, trunk, body

Sources

Where this information comes from

Wiktionary data was expanded into structured fields by Wiktextract. Matching Princeton WordNet definitions and semantic relationships, plus CMUdict ARPABET pronunciations, are merged into this same canonical word page.

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