Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A painful, inflamed swelling of the bursa at the first joint of the big toe, characterized by enlargement of the joint and lateral displacement of the toe.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A swelling on the foot caused by the inflammation of a bursa, especially that over the metatarsophalangeal joint of the great toe. It may occur, however, over the corresponding joint of the fifth digit, or more rarely over the scaphoid bone.
Wiktionary
- n. pathology A bump or bulge on the first joint of the big toe caused by the swelling of a sac of fluid under the skin.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. (Med.) Same as bunyon.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a painful swelling of the bursa of the first joint of the big toe
Etymologies
- From alteration of earlier bunny ("lump, swelling"), from Middle English bony, boni ("bunion, swelling"); or perhaps from Italian bugnone ("a knob, boil, blain"), an augmented form of Italian bugno ("beehive"); both Middle English and Italian words from Old French bugne, buigne, bune ("bump, knob, swelling"), from Old Norse bunga ("an elevation, bulge") or from Old Frankish *bungjo (“a swelling, lump, bump”), both Old Norse and Old Frankish from Proto-Germanic *bungô, *bunkô (“lump, clump, heap, crowd”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰenǵʰ- (“thick, dense, fat”). Cognate with Dutch bonk ("lump, clump"), German Bunge ("swelling, tuber"). (Wiktionary)
- Probably alteration of obsolete bunny, swelling, from Middle English bony, perhaps from Old French bugne; see bun1. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Many people know the term 'bunion' and that it occurs on a foot, but don't know exactly what a bunion is.”
The Huffington Post: Bunions: When Do They Become Something To Worry About?
“If your bunion is related to having a flat foot, prescription shoe inserts can relieve pain and slow bunion progression by supporting the arch and taking pressure off the big toe.”
Consumer Reports: Get relief from bunion pain without surgery
“The ones associated with the great toe are known as a bunion Hallux Abducto Valgus foot deformity, the fifth toe deformity is called a tailor's bunion and on the top of the toes, hammertoes can develop.”
The Huffington Post: Dr. Steve Rosenberg: Help... Is It a Shoe Problem or a Foot Problem?
“If you have pain that is chronic and severe, or a long-term bunion progresses rapidly with increasing pain, discuss surgery with an orthopedist or podiatrist.”
Consumer Reports: Get relief from bunion pain without surgery
“The condition is commonly called a bunion (above).”
WN.com - Articles related to Tips to take care of your heels
“Most people think a bunion is an abnormal growth of bone at the base of the big toe.”
The Huffington Post: Bunions: When Do They Become Something To Worry About?
“Pain directly on the bunion is a symptom of direct shoe pressure.”
The Huffington Post: Bunions: When Do They Become Something To Worry About?
“-- A bunion is a swelling on the ball of the great toe, and is the result of pressure and irritation by friction.”
Burroughs' Encyclopaedia of Astounding Facts and Useful Information, 1889
“A: A bunion is a bony protrusion on the joint at the base of either big toe.”
“bunion' when you were talking about that Big Onion tour for class, and today you messed up 'alley cat'.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘bunion’.
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slumry's Words
cattywampus, ingratiate, lackadaisical, exactitude, exfoliate, fulminate, circumnavigation, circuitous, debride, sidle, sequester, chicory and 1002 more...
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ulyssean
... as in "by James Joyce"
stately, plump, aloft, gurgling, untonsured, chrysostomos, jowl, parapet, jesuit, indigestion, scutter, noserag and 688 more...
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Tuesday words
just the next words that come along
nasality, transignification, lapsarian, disciple, slanguage, atwitter, avast, ahoy, asleep, awake, hymnody, glissade and 573 more...
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Ugliest Words Ever
words that I refuse to say out loud.
tuna, uranus, bulbous, vaginal, rectum, cunnilingus, flatulance, pedagogy, blooper, booger, beefy, polyp and 116 more...
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words I don't like very much
many frequently used by moms; words that sound dirtier than they are
crisp, grunge, cuddle, puke, smear, voucher, manipulate, fodder, coddle, fecund, chunk, hunk and 71 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for bunion.
bilby Would you like me to call you Bunion Boo? Jan 24, 2013
ruzuzu That etymology is great! (And a bit iroquoisy--I just added bunny to my squirrel list.) Jan 24, 2013
bilby If you don't want to catch bunions, you should try to avoid llama's hip stuffed into your soul. Rubbing some faded apple blossom all over your fist cures sadness. Jan 24, 2013