budtender

English

Alternative forms

bud tender

Etymology

Blend of bud +‎ bartender.

Noun

budtender (plural budtenders)

(informal) A recreational or medical cannabis dispensary worker who sells marijuana and is knowledgeable about various cannabis products.
Synonym: potender
- 2004 Jul 2, Henry K. Lee, 'Medical pot users say they won't stop - Legal impact: Consensus is enforcement won't increase', San Francisco Chronicle (p. B5):
  "You can call me the bud tender," the white-coated Arrow said as he offered patients their choice of 13 different kinds of marijuana, in addition to such goodies as chocolate-flavored cannabis bars.
- 2005 June 15, Dean E. Murphy, “California Reins In Clinics Using Marijuana for Medical Purposes”, in The New York Times:
  The so-called budtenders who work behind large glass display cases provide assistance in selecting the best strain. All of them are medical marijuana users, and they typically are medicated while working.
- 2013 May 17, Jenny Kleeman, “Cannabis: Colorado's budding industry”, in The Guardian:
  As a registered medical marijuana patient – for a chronic stomach condition – he has to show ID every time he goes into a dispensary, and fears he'd get special treatment if the "budtenders" knew they were serving the influential critic.
- 2014 October 31, Lynd Bui, Dana Hedgpeth, “Marijuana-infused candy found in Prince George’s County”, in The Washington Post:
  Oak Peak is a “budtender” at the Giving Tree of Denver, a marijuana dispensary that sells such edibles as Karma Kandy.
- For more quotations using this term, see Citations:budtender.

Related terms

budtending