buffalo
noun
any of several large wild oxen of the family Bovidae.
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buffalo
1 American
[buhf-uh-loh]
/ ˈbʌf əˌloʊ /
noun
-
buffaloes,
plural
-
buffalos,
plural
-
buffalo
plural
-
any of several large wild oxen of the family Bovidae.
-
a buffalofish.
-
a shuffling tap-dance step.
verb (used with object)
Informal.
-
buffalos,
present (3rd person singular)
-
buffaloed,
past participle, past
-
buffaloing
present participle
-
to puzzle or baffle; confuse; mystify.
He was buffaloed by the problem.
-
to impress or intimidate by a display of power, importance, etc..
The older boys buffaloed him.
Buffalo
2
American
[buhf-uh-loh]
/ ˈbʌf əˌloʊ /
noun
buffalo
1
British
/ ˈbʌfəˌləʊ /
noun
-
Also called: Cape buffalo. a member of the cattle tribe, Syncerus caffer , mostly found in game reserves in southern and eastern Africa and having upward-curving horns
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short for water buffalo
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Also called: bison. a member of the cattle tribe, Bison bison , formerly widely distributed over the prairies of W North America but now confined to reserves and parks, with a massive head, shaggy forequarters, and a humped back
verb
-
(often passive) to confuse
-
to intimidate
Buffalo
2
British
/ ˈbʌfəˌləʊ /
noun
Buffalo
Cultural
Discover More
Niagara Falls is northwest of Buffalo.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
buffalosimple
-
buffalossimple
-
have buffaloedperfect
-
has buffaloedperfect
-
am buffaloingprogressive
-
are buffaloingprogressive
-
is buffaloingprogressive
-
have been buffaloingperfect progressive
-
has been buffaloingperfect progressive
Past
-
buffaloedsimple
-
had buffaloedperfect
-
was buffaloingprogressive
-
were buffaloingprogressive
-
had been buffaloingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of buffalo
1535–45, earlier bufalo < Portuguese (now bufaro ) < Late Latin būfalus, variant of Latin būbalus bubal
Explanation
A buffalo is a large, ox-like animal with horns and shaggy fur. In North America, a buffalo is another name for a bison. There are various types of buffalo around the world, including South Asia's water buffalo and the African buffalo, but the bison is the most well-known type of buffalo in the U.S. You can also use the word as a verb, meaning "to intimidate," and when it's capitalized, Buffalo is a city in New York state. These various meanings have resulted in the longest sentence in English that uses only one word: "Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo" meaning — Buffalonian (1) buffalos (2) that other Buffalonian (3) buffalos (4) scare (5) also scare (6) other Buffalonian (7) buffalos (8).
Vocabulary lists containing buffalo
In a Pickle: Words for When You're in Trouble
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A Vocabulary Bestiary: Animals That Behave as Verbs
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Amazing Animals, List 1
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
Real-life proprietor Andrea Pruett, a sweet but steely Southerner who kept her own gun behind the counter, greeted them in French and German, then fed them buffalo burgers and omelets.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026
Authorities in Zambia have warned people not to eat meat from wildlife after dozens of wild animals, including hippos, elephants, buffalo and a crocodile died following an anthrax outbreak.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
Our favorite dish was the house-made pappardelle with buffalo mozzarella and cherry tomatoes, topped with beautifully seared scallops.
From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026
One project in the works: a buffalo mac and cheese packing 40 grams of protein for GLP-1 users trying to stave off muscle loss.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
They saw his horses and buffalo and an authentic stagecoach.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
After forcing a Bills fumble, the Rams set up a game-winning field goal that Buffalo blocked.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
The second-year kicker missed one attempt and had another blocked that could have won the game before the Rams lost in overtime to Buffalo.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
Monday night’s matchup against the Buffalo Bills provided the latest showcase.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
As Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen took the field midway through overtime on Monday night, he quickly realized who needed to take charge and put his team in position for a game-winning score.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
Like the guys from Buffalo we'd been playing against that day Guys I felt like I knew.
From "Tradition" by Brendan Kiely
Another woman, Goma Pandit, said she had lost her buffaloes and all her other cattle.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
Judy, the first rabbit to join the city's police force, has proven to her macho colleagues — buffaloes, hippos, and warthogs — that she deserves her place in the investigative department.
From Barron's ● Nov. 25, 2025
The buffaloes were being chased by lions in neighbouring Botswana when they "fell from a deep cliff" into the Chobe River on the Namibian side of the border, it added in a statement.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2025
It has some of the fewer than 100 remaining critically endangered mountain bongos in the world, alongside rhinos, elephants, buffaloes, lions, leopards and others.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 2, 2024
Jody lay in his bed and thought of the impossible world of Indians and buffaloes, a world that had ceased to be forever.
From "The Red Pony" by John Steinbeck
This includes the taurine cattle found primarily in Europe and temperate areas of Asia; indicine cattle, or zebus, found primarily in India and tropical areas of Asia; and water buffalos in East and Southeast Asia.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 13, 2023
For now, the county has told people to use bottled water for all their needs or to fill jugs at tankers called water buffalos, which have been brought in near the burns.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 19, 2023
The family is from Ibrash, in the agricultural Nile Delta province of Sharqia, where water buffalos, cows and donkeys share dirt roads with cars, motorbikes and three-wheeled rickshaws known as tuk-tuks.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 19, 2023
He says the amount stolen was $580,000 - and that he got it for selling buffalos.
From BBC ● Dec. 2, 2022
In the fields, gray buffalos and brown cows graze lazily on the grass.
From "First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers" by Loung Ung
When was the last time you looked at the exquisite list of synonyms for the word “baffled”? They may be among the best in the English language: puzzled, nonplused, discombobulated, flummoxed, stumped, fogged, wildered, buffaloed.
From New York Times ● Feb. 29, 2024
"Don’t be buffaloed by experts and elites," he said.
From Fox News ● Oct. 19, 2021
The senior-laden Bulls have won 12 consecutive games and won’t be able to sneak up on anyone after they buffaloed Arizona in the first round last season.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 18, 2019
“You probably could have buffaloed people 10 years ago,” said Sassa.
From Time ● Feb. 18, 2015
Despite this, Dasch confidently assured them that he had "buffaloed" the man.
From Nazi Saboteurs by Samantha Seiple
When it comes to buffaloing the opposite side, that's my long suit.
From The Outlet by Andy Adams
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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.
