Kenneth G. Wilson (1923–). The Columbia Guide to Standard American English. 1993.
bust 1 (n., v.)
The verb was once a Substandard slang form of burst, and in some uses bust is still more nearly slang than it is Conversational. But many uses of both the verb and the noun made from it are now Standard, though limited mainly to the lower Conversational levels and the Informal writing that imitates them.
The verb bust (past tense and past participle are both either busted or bust) is Conversational in these senses: “break or burst” (The dam has busted); “to make or to become penniless” (I busted the bank at the casino; The poker game busted me); “to reduce or be reduced in rank, especially in the military” (He busted me to private again); “to tame a horse” (He busts horses for a living); “to break up, to bring to an end,” especially with up (The cops busted up the crap game); “to hit with the fist” (He busted me right in the eye); “to place or be placed under arrest” (She got busted for speeding). Conversational or slang are these noun senses: “a raid by police”; “a drunken party”; “a punch”; “an arrest”; “a financial crash.” Note too that trustbusting is Standard gerund and participle, even though usually limited to Informal and Semiformal written use. And busted is a Standard Informal and Conversational adjective: She’s got a busted arm. The noun bust also means simply “a failure”: the new play was an absolute bust. It is Conversational, or perhaps slang.
