Talk:buxom

Hello in french
we have a lot of expressions for buxomness, a feminine quality which'll be enjoyed, I hope, as late as 632 Anno Fordis. We have :

-if the lady's general silhouette is buxom : then she is « plantureuse »; she is a « belle plante » (a beautiful plant); « bien en chair » (fully-fleshed); « sensuelle » (sensuous); « une belle pouliche » (a nice filly); a « dahlia » ; & in the south «  une jolie caille » ( a pretty quail). In slang, we have too : « bien roulée » (well rolled-up, see Petit Larousse 2008 p.902); and a vulgar adjectif : « bandante » (from the verb « bander », to get horny, see Petit Larousse 2008 p. 98). The adj. « canon » is rather reserved to slender big-breasted modern type of beauties.

-if she has big bosoms : she is « a Jayne Mansfield » (this understood now only by old timers); she has « de beaux poumons » (nice lungs); or she has « du monde au balcon » (quite a mob on her balcony).

-if she has nice big buttocks : we say she has « un cul du tonnerre » (a thunder of an arse); or «  un sacré pétard » ( a blasted cracker).

In short, as we used to say in the sixties (admirative expressions about feminine beauty seem to have sadly dwindled away since...) « si je l'avais dans mon lit, j'irais pas coucher dans la baignoire... » (should I have her in my bed, I would not go & sleep in the bath-tub...)

T.y. Arapaima 09:44, 24 August 2010 (UTC)

Question About Etymology
All of the (few) sources I have seen indicate that the etymology cited by this article is correct. It seems odd to me though. Is it not more likely that the present meaning of the word is derived from "buc" and the suffix "-sum", as in Scots "bouksome"? The sense is much closer. Any explanation or sources would be appreciated.

JDHinten (talk) 23:45, 7 April 2013 (UTC)

RFC discussion: May 2019–November 2022
English. Perhaps some senses can be merged or converted to subsenses. Jberkel 16:59, 29 May 2019 (UTC)


 * Looks good now. Resolved (not by me) GreyishWorm (talk) 01:42, 12 November 2022 (UTC)