busted up also bust up; busting up; busts up
informal
1
: to end a relationship with someone
Their marriage busted up after three years.
Didn't you hear? They busted up.
2
: to cause (something) to end
His gambling problem busted up their marriage.
The police busted the party up.
informal
1
: the end of a relationship, marriage, etc. : breakup
the bust-up of their marriage
2
British
: a very bad argument or disagreement : quarrel or fight
They had a bust-up over money.
Examples of bust up in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Oct. 2025
Jenna walked in the first day and busted up laughing.
—Marc Malkin, Variety, 8 Aug. 2025
After trying to bust up a bank robbery dressed as a little girl, Frank is visited by a femme fatale-type named Beth (Pamela Anderson), whose brother was murdered.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 30 July 2025
Dust was everywhere, the walls had been bombed with mediocre tags, the floors were busted up, and there were wires hanging from the ceiling.
—Eddie Huang, Curbed, 14 July 2025
When DeBlois pans around Berk’s gathering hall, each citizen seems more busted up and exhausted than the last.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2025
Steve Bannon has called for Elon Musk to be deported from the United States, after the dramatic bust up between the tech billionaire and President Donald Trump.
—James Bickerton, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 June 2025
Toronto, out in the second round despite a 2-0 series lead, has Maple Leafs fans waking up angry, their team president let-go, and plans in place to bust up their core-four nucleus.
—Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 27 May 2025
Chris Willman, Variety, 4 Sep. 2025
Video of a wild bust-up on an American Airlines flight shows two men battling it out in the aisle after one allegedly grabbed a woman's neck while passengers disembarked.
—Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 28 Aug. 2025
The extraordinary public bust-up between Zelenskyy, Trump and Vice President JD Vance in February stunned European powers.
—Freddie Clayton, NBC news, 18 Aug. 2025
Tesla has faced serious pressure from investors over Musk’s work with President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and later Musk’s bitter bust-up with Trump.
—Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 10 July 2025
The Wall Street Journal said that Bezos’ Blue Origin executives have pushed for more government contracts in the wake of Trump’s explosive bust-up with rival billionaire space company founder Elon Musk.
—Martha Ross, Mercury News, 27 June 2025
Saudi Arabia will host a key summit Tuesday attended by both Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is trying to repair relations with Washington after his disastrous Oval Office bust-up with President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
—Alexander Smith, NBC News, 10 Mar. 2025
Cops are already fretting about what the bust-up could mean for police.
—Thomas Brewster, Forbes, 7 Feb. 2025
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Phrasal verb
So much so that the official Carol Burnett Show YouTube channel has several 15-minute salutes of Burnett, Harvey Korman, Tim Conway, Vicki Lawrence, and others busting up and ruining the bit.
—Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Oct. 2025
Jenna walked in the first day and busted up laughing.
—Marc Malkin, Variety, 8 Aug. 2025
After trying to bust up a bank robbery dressed as a little girl, Frank is visited by a femme fatale-type named Beth (Pamela Anderson), whose brother was murdered.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 30 July 2025
Dust was everywhere, the walls had been bombed with mediocre tags, the floors were busted up, and there were wires hanging from the ceiling.
—Eddie Huang, Curbed, 14 July 2025
When DeBlois pans around Berk’s gathering hall, each citizen seems more busted up and exhausted than the last.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2025
Steve Bannon has called for Elon Musk to be deported from the United States, after the dramatic bust up between the tech billionaire and President Donald Trump.
—James Bickerton, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 June 2025
Toronto, out in the second round despite a 2-0 series lead, has Maple Leafs fans waking up angry, their team president let-go, and plans in place to bust up their core-four nucleus.
—Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 27 May 2025
Noun
But by the end, in its rush, the movie still hasn’t quite come up with a point of view on whether McCartney really got over his bust-up with Lennon with a little help from his Wings friends, or whether forming a band was ultimately incidental to overcoming any lingering separation anxiety.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 4 Sep. 2025
Video of a wild bust-up on an American Airlines flight shows two men battling it out in the aisle after one allegedly grabbed a woman's neck while passengers disembarked.
—Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 28 Aug. 2025
The extraordinary public bust-up between Zelenskyy, Trump and Vice President JD Vance in February stunned European powers.
—Freddie Clayton, NBC news, 18 Aug. 2025
Tesla has faced serious pressure from investors over Musk’s work with President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and later Musk’s bitter bust-up with Trump.
—Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 10 July 2025
The Wall Street Journal said that Bezos’ Blue Origin executives have pushed for more government contracts in the wake of Trump’s explosive bust-up with rival billionaire space company founder Elon Musk.
—Martha Ross, Mercury News, 27 June 2025
Saudi Arabia will host a key summit Tuesday attended by both Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is trying to repair relations with Washington after his disastrous Oval Office bust-up with President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
—Alexander Smith, NBC News, 10 Mar. 2025
Cops are already fretting about what the bust-up could mean for police.
—Thomas Brewster, Forbes, 7 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bust up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bust%20up. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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