pain in the bum
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
Someone or something very annoying.
Register: slang
Examples
2000, Max Allen, Crush: The New Australian Wine Book
This is fine and dandy for the wineries and the consumer […] but it’s a pain in the bum for people like me who have to pigeonhole everybody to make them fit nicely in a book.
Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)
Sources & notes
Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).
Common questions
What does “pain in the bum” mean?
Someone or something very annoying.
Is “pain in the bum” formal or informal?
pain in the bum is generally slang.