bluster

American  

[bluhs-ter] / ˈblʌs tər /

verb (used without object)

blusters, present (3rd person singular) blustered, past participle, past blustering present participle

1. to roar and be tumultuous, as wind.

2. to be loud, noisy, or swaggering; utter loud, empty menaces or protests.

   He blusters about revenge but does nothing.

   Synonyms:

   gloat, boast, brag, rant

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verb (used with object)

blusters, present (3rd person singular) blustered, past participle, past blustering present participle

1. to force or accomplish by blustering.

   He blustered his way through the crowd.

   Synonyms:

   bully, storm, threaten

noun

1. boisterous noise and violence.

   the bluster of the streets.

2. noisy, empty threats or protests; inflated talk.

   bluff and bluster.

bluster British  

/ ˈblʌstə /

verb

1. to speak or say loudly or boastfully

2. to act in a bullying way

3. to force or attempt to force (a person) into doing something by behaving thus

4. (intr) (of the wind) to be noisy or gusty

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noun

1. boisterous talk or action; swagger

2. empty threats or protests

3. a strong wind; gale

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• blustery
  adjective
• blusterous
  adjective
• outbluster
  verb (used with object)
• blusteringly
  adverb
• blusterer
  noun
• blustering
  noun

Conjugated Forms

Present

• have blustered
  perfect
• has blustered
  perfect 3rd person singular
• is blustering
  progressive 3rd person singular
• has been blustering
  perfect progressive 3rd person singular
• am blustering
  progressive 1st person singular
• blustering
  participle
• have been blustering
  perfect progressive
• are blustering
  progressive
• blusters
  singular 3rd person

Past

• had blustered
  perfect
• were blustering
  progressive plural
• was blustering
  progressive singular
• had been blustering
  perfect progressive
• blustered
  participle
• blustered
  simple

Future

• will bluster
  simple
• will have blustered
  perfect
• will have been blustering
  perfect progressive
• will be blustering
  progressive

Etymology

Origin of bluster

First recorded in 1520–30; perhaps from Low German blustern, blüstern “to blow violently”; compare Old Norse blāstr “blowing, hissing”

Explanation

If you tell the captain of the basketball team that you're going to beat him at a game of hoops even though you've never played, you're speaking with a lot of bluster or false confidence and bravado. Bluster can also mean a strong wind. On a blustery day, you'll see trees blowing and people holding onto their hats. When someone full of bluster is talking about how they can do something that you think they can't, they're blowing a lot of hot air in your direction. And coincidently, another name for that type of person is a blowhard.

Example Sentences

They are lulled into a smug confidence that his threats will always be toothless bluster.

From Salon • Apr. 20, 2026

Even accounting for bluster, bluff, and negotiation tactics, it’s an extraordinary statement from any world leader, let alone a U.S. president, to make.

From Barron's • Apr. 7, 2026

Thereupon nuclear bluster permanently vanished from the U.S. presidential vocabulary, experts in diplomacy tell us, for reasons that boil down to a loss of credibility once Moscow could match the U.S. in nuclear firepower.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026

“The market is still of the mind that we are going to see this kind of bluster from the get-go — an opening salvo that’s pretty aggressive,” Melson said.

From MarketWatch • Jan. 21, 2026

Then his bluster left him, and he leaned heavily against the wall, too weak to stand.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

Related Words

• bulldoze
• gloat
• hector
• swagger
• yap