puff

[ puhf ]

/ pʌf /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR puff ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a short, quick blast, as of wind or breath.

an abrupt emission of air, smoke, vapor, etc.

an act of inhaling and exhaling, as on a cigarette or pipe; whiff.

the sound of an abrupt emission of air, vapor, etc.

a small quantity of vapor, smoke, etc., emitted at one blast.

an inflated or distended part of a thing; swelling; protuberance.

a form of light pastry with a filling of cream, jam, or the like.

a portion of material gathered and held down at the edges but left full in the middle, as on a sleeve.

a cylindrical roll of hair.

a quilted bed covering, usually filled with down.

a commendation, especially an exaggerated one, of a book, an actor's performance, etc.

powder puff.

a ball or pad of soft material.

puffball.

Chiefly British Slang. a male homosexual.

verb (used without object)

to blow with short, quick blasts, as the wind.

to be emitted in a puff.

to emit a puff or puffs; breathe quick and hard, as after violent exertion.

to go with puffing or panting.

to emit puffs or whiffs of vapor or smoke.

to move with such puffs: The locomotive puffed into the station.

to take puffs at a cigar, cigarette, etc.

to become inflated, distended, or swollen (usually followed by up).

(especially of an auctioneer's accomplice) to bid on an item at an auction solely to increase the price that the final bidder must pay.

verb (used with object)

to send forth (air, vapor, etc.) in short, quick blasts.

to drive or impel by puffing, or with a short, quick blast.

to extinguish by means of a puff (usually followed by out): to puff a match out.

to smoke (a cigar, cigarette, etc.).

to inflate, distend, or swell, especially with air.

to make fluffy; fluff (often followed by up): to puff up a pillow.

to inflate with pride, vanity, etc. (often followed by up): Their applause puffed him up.

to praise unduly or with exaggeration.

to apply powder to (the cheeks, neck, etc.) with a powder puff.

to apply (powder) with a powder puff.

to arrange in puffs, as the hair.

Origin of puff

1175–1225; (v.) Middle English puffen (compare Middle Dutch puffen, Low German pof, puf); (noun) Middle English puf, puffe; of imitative orig.

SYNONYMS FOR puff

11 overpraise, exaggeration, puffery, flattery.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR puff ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM puff

puff·ing·ly, adverb un·puffed, adjective un·puff·ing, adjective

Words nearby puff

puerto rico, puerto rico trench, puerto vallarta, puertorriqueño, pufendorf, puff, puff adder, puff paste, puff pastry, puff piece, puff-puff

Example sentences from the Web for puffed

Afterward, you can actually see her young career flash before her eyes as she makes a kind of puffed up blowfish face.

The Curious Little Shell That Restarted Jenny Slate’s Career |Luke Hopping |December 15, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
I nodded, puffed my chest out, but then looked at the ground.

I Shot Bin Laden |Elliot Ackerman |November 16, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The winter air is rent with cries from thousands of puffed up lips, begging to be let in.

Russia’s Gold Digger Academy |Peter Pomerantsev |November 11, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Some came wrapped in what looked like puffed up fabric worms, with hair just as knotted and twisted.

Comme Des Garçons, Kenzo, and More Japanese Designers at Paris Fashion Week |Liza Foreman |March 4, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

Orshansky puffed on a device that looked like a dental tool.

New York’s Nanny-State E-Cig Ban |Olivia Nuzzi |December 20, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
McWhorter puffed for some minutes in silence: "Think you he will come here the night?"

Prairie Flowers |James B. Hendryx
The largest designs of crepon show a raised or puffed appearance.

Textiles |William H. Dooley
I'm puffed up with money, and have n't the heart I once had.

The Short Works of George Meredith |George Meredith
His nose was long and pinched, while brown and puffed pockets hung beneath his eyes.

Vandover and the Brute |Frank Norris
I see that the success you have attained while as yet so young has not puffed you up in any way.

Wulf the Saxon |G. A. Henty

British Dictionary definitions for puffed

puff

/ (pʌf) /

noun

a short quick draught, gust, or emission, as of wind, smoke, air, etc, esp a forceful one

the amount of wind, smoke, etc, released in a puff

the sound made by or associated with a puff

an instance of inhaling and expelling the breath as in smoking

a swelling

a light aerated pastry usually filled with cream, jam, etc

a powder puff

exaggerated praise, as of a book, product, etc, esp through an advertisement

a piece of clothing fabric gathered up so as to bulge in the centre while being held together at the edges

a loose piece of hair wound into a cylindrical roll, usually over a pad, and pinned in place in a coiffure

a less common word for quilt (def. 1)

one's breath (esp in the phrase out of puff)

derogatory, slang a male homosexual

a dialect word for puffball

verb

to blow or breathe or cause to blow or breathe in short quick draughts or blasts

(tr; often foll by out; usually passive) to cause to be out of breath

to take puffs or draws at (a cigarette, cigar, or pipe)

to move with or by the emission of puffs the steam train puffed up the incline

(often foll by up, out, etc) to swell, as with air, pride, etc

(tr) to praise with exaggerated empty words, often in advertising

(tr) to apply (cosmetic powder) from a powder puff to (the face)

to increase the price of (a lot in an auction) artificially by having an accomplice make false bids

Word Origin for puff

Old English pyffan; related to Dutch German puffen, Swiss pfuffen, Norwegian puffa, all of imitative origin

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

puff

noun

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

Origin of puff

SYNONYMS FOR puff

OTHER WORDS FROM puff

Words nearby puff

Example sentences from the Web for puffed

British Dictionary definitions for puffed

noun

verb

Word Origin for puff

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

puff

noun

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

Origin of puff

SYNONYMS FOR puff

OTHER WORDS FROM puff

Words nearby puff

Words related to puffed

Example sentences from the Web for puffed

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noun

verb

Word Origin for puff

British Dictionary definitions for puffed