Last verified: April 2026
Definition
To bogart (verb) is to use or consume something without sharing — most commonly, a joint in a rotation. Merriam-Webster formalized the entry as “to use or consume without sharing.” The verb has since expanded beyond cannabis to mean hogging anything, but its origin is entirely weed.
Etymology & Origin
The word is named for Humphrey Bogart (1899-1957), the Hollywood leading man of Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon, and The Big Sleep. Bogart had a signature habit: he let cigarettes dangle from the corner of his mouth for whole scenes of dialogue, rarely actually taking a drag. The image was unmistakable to anyone who had ever shared a joint — all that smoke, barely touched.
The term was codified by the 1968 Los Angeles band Fraternity of Man in their song “Don’t Bogart Me” (also known as “Don’t Bogart That Joint”), written by band members Elliot Ingber and Lawrence “Stash” Wagner. Wagner later recalled: “Elliot turned to me and said, ‘Hey man, don’t bogart that thing.’ I asked what it meant. He said, ‘You know, like Humphrey Bogart always had a cigarette in his hand or hanging from his lips.’”
The song was featured prominently in Easy Rider (1969), directed by Dennis Hopper and starring Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and Jack Nicholson. The film made $60 million on a $400,000 budget and carried the phrase into general American English within a few years. By the 1990s, Merriam-Webster had added the verb to the dictionary.
Usage
Always used as a verb, typically with “don’t.”
- “Don’t bogart that joint — it’s been with you for two minutes.”
- “She bogarted the whole pre-roll while telling a story about her dog.”
- “Quit bogarting the remote, bro.” (non-cannabis usage, also common)
Unlike most cannabis slang, “bogart” is socially safe in any setting — dinner table, workplace, front of a grandparent. It has fully escaped its cannabis origins.
Related Terms
See also greener (torching the green flake), cherry (still glowing), and the full bogart faux pas guide for the deeper story.
Elliot Ingber, co-writer of "Don't Bogart Me," was also an early member of the Mothers of Invention with Frank Zappa. Lawrence "Stash" Wagner's nickname had nothing to do with cannabis — "stash" was a Polish diminutive of his middle name, Stanislaus.
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