Is the word 'bum' rude?

[Fedupnanny]

I was wiping my little girl charge after she had used the toilet and I said this...
"Please bend over DC as I need to wipe your bum"

Was immediately told off by the BM who was in the next room working, she said "don't say bum, you need to say bottom, I will not have them learning the word bum at this age"

I felt this was a little ridiculous and can't get it out of my head. What do the rest of you think? She is obviously within her rights to tell me what I can and cant say to her children but I feel this is a little OTT and never thought bum was a rude word!

Bottom sounds weird for a kid to use, for me at least. My DC have always used bum, I grew up saying bum (fwiw, I disagree DayLillie, I was raised in Essex and everyone said bum).

Botty is downright creepy.

Bum is fine. Bottom is OK. BTM (as coined by DMum) is quirky but not offensive.

I wouldn't like to hear a toddler talking about arses.

Teach her this...

I've got a toothache,
a gumboil, a bellyache
Pains in my left leg
and a pimple on my bum!

It's a bit of a 'regional/class' thing I think.

Was she calling her DH that with the child in earshot?

Bottom isn't twee!

We wouldn't use it at school. We would say sit on your bottoms please. No school I have ever taught in has used bum.

No, it's not, but your boss is. It's a pity you can't, but it would be nice to casually clarify "so bum is rude, and fucking cunt is fine, yes?"

why is it weird for a child to use 'bottom'? I love words and work with words so I guess I'm quite hot on using the correct word (so bottom, thank you, television etc), but also interesting, long and silly words too. I know she'll be saying bum, ta and TV soon enough which is fine, but I suppose for me this is about starting off on the right foot.

That doesn't make any sense at all, even to me . Still don't get what's odd about a child saying 'bottom' though!

I don't think it is a 'rude' word as in bad language, but it's a word I really don't like and I ask my DC not to use it. I just hate hearing young children use it...it just sounds awful to my ears. If I used a childminder I would ask them not to use the word too.

My DS had a friend (both 5) round to play the other day and he fell over outside. I asked him if he was ok, to which he replied "I'm ok, I just hurt my posterior". That made me laugh...such a grown up word to use for such a young child! I think we'll stick with bottom.

Bum is fine by me. They aren't allowed to say bum or poo at school so I have been told by DDs though.

What's a BM? Bum Monitor?

I'd have said "Sorry, but I don't consider it a rude word."

pearpotter, what word do they use instead of poo at school then?

I'd have said "Sorry, but I don't consider it a rude word."

I think in OP's position, she just has to go with it. But she shouldn't feel she is saying 'rude' words.

I think that bum is fine, but I have noticed other parents telling their children not to use it.

I do find it a bit twee, though. I vaguely associate avoiding the word "bum" with the use of "pardon" and "trump" which make me cringe a bit.

I wasn't allowed to use the world 'toilet' in a previous job. It had to be 'loo'.

I use bottom rather than bum. I do use poo though. Wouldn't make a big thing of someone using different words, but do draw the line at swearing.

Yes it's a rude word

Buzkashi Dare I say it, but probably Essex is as bad as The North for some people.

I was just speaking from my experience of moving from the midlands to Lancashire in the '70s. They said Trump a lot too

What can you say instead of poo? Stool? . It used to be 'Bob' and my school.

Botty sounds terribly twee and the sort of word that would make a child embarrassed about their own body.

Bum is fine. Can see some parents might have issues with it but I think they are wrong

Calling your husband a fucking anything in front of a child is not fine. Massive double standards on her part. Is she usually a joy to work for?

Had no idea bum was considered rude by anyone, and agree that 'bottom' is twee. And I'm not northern or from Essex .

pearpotter, what word do they use instead of poo at school then?

I don't know that "poo" is banned entirely, but that it shouldn't come up in ordinary conversation "no toilet talk" they are told. So they say "I need to use the toilet" rather than "Miss, I need a poo!" :)

I used bum on here once, wrt a coat and was told off very sniffily by another poster. I don't have a problem with it. Obviously

I vaguely associate avoiding the word "bum" with the use of "pardon" and "trump" which make me cringe a bit.

What on earth is wrong with using the word pardon? If my DC replied with "what?" I would definitely pick them up on it.

I don't mind bum, but I can imagine having a different view of which words are OK to my nanny. What I can imagine is talking to her about it in front of my DC. What about united front? I think she undermined you a bit and in your position I'd be a bit annoyed with how she raised it (esp given the double standard).

What I can't imagine... oof.

MrsMcRuff - no, nothing salacious! I just meant that kids are often really literal, and if I'd said 'bottom' with one of mine, I'd have had the whole 'sit on my bottom what? the bottom of my feet? at the bottom of the stairs?' Bum is much easier.

I've always gone for words that can't be turned into a discussion - so it's all very functional round here . . .