- present participle of bluff.
bluffing
Americannoun
-
the act of misleading someone by a display of strength, self-confidence, or the like.
While the bluffing goes on at the negotiating table, the public, the striking workers, and the employer all lose.
-
Poker, Bridge. the act of deceiving an opponent by a show of confidence in the strength of one’s cards.
The digital version of the game falls short, because the bluffing needs that eye-to-eye contact, the smug and knowing smiles.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of bluffing
First recorded in 1845–50; bluff 2 ( def. ) + -ing 1 ( def. ) for the noun senses; bluff 2 ( def. ) + -ing 2 ( def. ) for the adjective sense
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
One of the people likened Kelleher’s strategy to playing hard-nosed poker with Swiss authorities, rather than simply bluffing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
Some said war was all but inevitable, while one salesman who gave his name as Mehdi predicted the negotiations would succeed, saying: "The Americans are bluffing."
From Barron's ● Feb. 25, 2026
Armed only with a lamp, he managed to scare off the men by bluffing that he had a gun, causing them to flee the scene empty-handed.
From BBC ● Feb. 3, 2026
Beneath all the bluffing lies a determination of credibility.
From Slate ● Nov. 20, 2025
At first Pupo thinks she's just bluffing and he's already congratulating Checo and himself for uncovering something hot.
From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
