budge

UK: /ˈbʌdʒ/ US: /bʌdʒ/ ,(buj)

Inflections of 'budge' (v): (⇒ conjugate)

budges

v 3rd person singular

budging

v pres p

budged

v past

budged

v past p

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

budge¹ /bʌdʒ/   v. [often used with a negative] , budged, budg•ing. 

1. to (cause to) move slightly: [no object]
   The car wouldn't budge.
   [~ + object]
   couldn't budge the car out of the snowbank.
2. to (cause to) change one's opinion or stated position;
   (cause to) give in: [no object]
   refused to budge on the question.
   [~ + object]
   We couldn't budge her on the issue.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

budge¹  (buj), v., budged, budg•ing. 

(often used negatively)

v.i. 

1. to move slightly;
   begin to move:
   He stepped on the gas but the car didn't budge.
2. to change one's opinion or stated position;
   yield:
   Once her father had said "no,'' he wouldn't budge.

v.t. 

3. to cause to move;
   begin to move:
   It took three of them to budge the rock.
4. to cause (someone) to reconsider or change an opinion, decision, or stated position:
   They couldn't budge the lawyer.

• Vulgar Latin *bullicāre to bubble, frequentative of Latin bullīre; see boil¹
• Anglo-French, Middle French bouger to stir
• 1580–90

budg′er, n. 
Synonyms

• 4. persuade, induce, move, sway, convince.

budge²  (buj), n. 

1. Clothing a fur made from lambskin with the wool dressed outward, used esp. as an inexpensive trimming on academic or official gowns.

adj. 

2. Clothing made from, trimmed, or lined with budge.
3. [Obs.] pompous;
   solemn.

• Middle English bugee, perh. akin to budget 1350–1400

Budge  (buj), n. 

1. Biographical (John) Donald, born 1915, U.S. tennis player.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

budge / bʌdʒ/ verb (usually used with a negative)

1. to move, however slightly
2. to change or cause to change opinions, etc

Etymology: 16th Century: from Old French bouger, from Vulgar Latin bullicāre (unattested) to bubble, from Latin bullīre to boil, from bulla bubble

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

Budge / bʌdʒ/ noun

1. Don(ald). 1915–2000, US tennis player, the first man to win the Grand Slam of singles championships (Australia, France, Wimbledon, and the US) in one year (1938)