bluff
1 Americanadjective
-
good-naturedly direct, blunt, or frank; heartily outspoken.
a big, bluff, generous man.
- Synonyms:
- straightforward, plain-spoken, honest, open, forthright, direct, blunt
- Antonyms:
- roundabout, indirect, circuitous
-
presenting a bold and nearly perpendicular front, as a coastline.
a bluff, precipitous headland.
-
Nautical. (of the bow of a vessel) having a full, blunt form.
noun
-
a cliff, headland, or hill with a broad, steep face.
-
North Dakota, Wisconsin, and the Canadian Prairie Provinces. a clump or grove of trees on a prairie or other generally treeless area.
verb (used with object)
-
to mislead by a display of knowledge, self-confidence, or boldness.
He bluffed me into believing that he was a doctor.
-
to gain by a misleading display of knowledge, self-confidence, or boldness.
He bluffed his way into the job.
-
Poker, Bridge. to deceive (an opponent) by a show of confidence in the strength of one's cards.
verb (used without object)
-
to mislead someone by presenting a bold, strong, or self-confident front.
They threatened to sue, but they were only bluffing.
-
Poker, Bridge. to deceive an opponent by a show of confidence in the strength of one's cards.
noun
-
an act or instance or the practice of misleading by presenting a bold, strong, or self-confident front.
Her story was all a bluff to get money from us.
His assertive manner is mostly bluff.
-
a person who misleads by presenting knowledge, self-confidence, or boldness; bluffer.
That big bluff doesn't have a nickel to his name.
idioms
-
call someone's bluff, to expose a person's deception, or challenge someone to carry out a threat.
He always said he would quit, so we finally called his bluff.
-
bluff with rags, to display confidence in the strength of one's hand when that hand is weak, as a way to win by making an opponent withdraw from play.
noun
-
a steep promontory, bank, or cliff, esp one formed by river erosion on the outside bend of a meander
-
a clump of trees on the prairie; copse
adjective
-
good-naturedly frank and hearty
-
(of a bank, cliff, etc) presenting a steep broad face
verb
noun
-
deliberate deception intended to create the impression of a stronger position or greater resources than one actually has
-
to challenge someone to give proof of his claims
Usage
What does bluff mean? Bluff describes someone or something that is blunt or frank in a good-natured way. Someone who talks in a bluff manner says things directly but not hurtfully. A bluff is a cliff or hill with a tall face on one side. Bluffs often border a river or ocean because they get their shape from erosion caused by the natural flow of water. To bluff is to mislead by showing strength or confidence. People bluff to make themselves seem more powerful, larger, or of more authority than those being bluffed. A bluff is an act of bluffing. Example: The cabin was built along the bluff, but erosion is making it sink down the hill.
Synonym Usage
See blunt.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
bluffernoun
-
bluffnessnoun
-
bluffableadjective
-
unbluffableadjective
-
unbluffedadjective
-
blufflyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
bluffsimple
-
bluffssimple
-
have bluffedperfect
-
has bluffedperfect
-
am bluffingprogressive
-
are bluffingprogressive
-
is bluffingprogressive
-
have been bluffingperfect progressive
-
has been bluffingperfect progressive
Past
-
bluffedsimple
-
had bluffedperfect
-
was bluffingprogressive
-
were bluffingprogressive
-
had been bluffingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bluff1
First recorded in 1620–30; origin uncertain; perhaps from Middle Low German blaff “smooth, even,” or from Middle Dutch blaf “broad, flat,” i.e., of a face or forehead
Origin of bluff2
First recorded in 1665–75; origin uncertain; perhaps from Low German bluffen “to bluster, frighten”; akin to Middle Dutch bluffen “to make a trick at cards”
Explanation
Bluff can mean a high cliff, or it can describe a person who is abrupt in manner. The most common usage of bluff is as a verb meaning to pretend. If you bluff at cards, you are pretending to have a better hand than you do. Many a good crime story ends with a bluff—"I've already contacted the police and they're on their way," the detective will say when that is not at all the case. The expression "calling your bluff" comes from poker, where you "call" a game to see someone's actual cards. Calling someone's bluff means forcing them to admit the truth.
Vocabulary lists containing bluff
100 Words Every Middle Schooler Should Know
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Tricky Terms for April Fool's Day
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
"The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell
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:
Is it possible, many have wondered, to foresee when and where a bluff might collapse — and perhaps even turn these predictions into early warning alerts?
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
Perched on a bluff near the Gulf of Mexico, Clearwater entices millions each year with its sugary-white beach and turquoise waters.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
“And he doesn’t bluff, either. What he does is groom us. He prepares us for things that would otherwise be unthinkable.”
From Salon ● May 26, 2026
Or it could be some combination of bluff and wishful thinking.
From BBC ● Apr. 6, 2026
“You have to go to that side of the bluff for anyone down in Driftaway to be able to see you.”
From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy
Separately, it emerged at an ongoing inquiry that Mr Williams had described a campaigner who tried to draw attention to faults in Horizon software in 2015 as a "bluffer".
From BBC ● Apr. 18, 2024
He was a bluffer, implying he advised people he didn’t, and a leaker, ratting out his allies in pursuit of his own agenda.
From Slate ● Aug. 3, 2016
A bluffer, a gambler… he’d rather do it the hard way.
From New York Times ● Feb. 29, 2012
He'd been a bit of a bluffer at his first musical conservatoire.
From The Guardian ● Nov. 23, 2010
You are an arrant bluffer, Phil Ralston, but you’re not quite smart enough.
From The Spoilers of the Valley by Watson, Robert
Biggest and bluffest of the four executive vice presidents is balding, 61-year-old Marvin E. Coyle, known as "Mr. Facts & Figures."
From Time Magazine Archive
Preparatory work had been done by a committee headed by Arthur Balfour Baron Riverdale of Sheffield, 62, one of Britain's biggest, baldest, blondest, bluffest steel tycoons.
From Time Magazine Archive
Among the latter may be classed Karl Steinmetz—the bluffest of the bluff—innocent even of his own innocence.
From The Sowers by Merriman, Henry Seton
At this stroke the man began to get angry; he frowned, and in his bluffest tone, began: "Look here now, you—" "Ta, ta, ta," interrupted M. Lecoq.
From The Mystery of Orcival by Gaboriau, Émile
In his bluffest and heartiest way Blake refused to hear of such a thing.
From Love Eternal by Haggard, Henry Rider
It was the culmination of a series of feints and bluffs in the preceding hours and days as the former reality TV star kept the world guessing.
From Barron's ● Feb. 28, 2026
In the 1980s, the two spearheaded a successful ballot measure still protects the coast from non-agricultural development and ensured access to the beaches and bluffs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 25, 2026
The agency posted photos online of the firefighters setting up a rope system to recover the body from the beach to the bluffs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 28, 2025
Downtown, where bluffs rise above the serpentine Mississippi River, George Campbell was walking his goldendoodle, Zac, when he spotted a group of National Guard soldiers in fatigues, handguns holstered at their hips.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2025
If we can get across the creek we could go up on the bluffs there and watch the road.
From "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy
Later, when sent to a chemical plant, he volunteered to work as a welder and bluffed his way through a quiz designed to test his qualifications.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 2, 2026
With Green stepping back to flay an expected short ball, he was bluffed by a Carse yorker that splattered the stumps.
From BBC ● Dec. 5, 2025
He bluffed, saying he had no debit card.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 20, 2025
He had a talent for making people laugh, a skill he honed one summer as a Catskills resort social director, and bluffed his way into a prestigious theater training program in Manhattan, the Neighborhood Playhouse.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 7, 2022
I knew I should never get away from the bully unless I bluffed.
From "Black Like Me" by John Howard Griffin
Kids know if you’re bluffing, so do not make a threat that you’re not willing to carry though.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 4, 2026
Those who remain alive might well be bluffing, projecting resolve even if they would privately prefer to sue for peace.
From Slate ● Mar. 26, 2026
Mehdi, a 58-year-old salesman believes the opposite, saying that "the Americans are bluffing" and that "the negotiations will be 100% successful".
From Barron's ● Feb. 25, 2026
"We aren't bluffing or joking - we don't have a purpose media wise we are only for money and money only and one of our main managers wanted me to reach out to you."
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2025
None of the Fugees had heard of a gang called the Africans, and many thought Tito had been bluffing to frighten the American boy when he claimed to be in such a gang.
From "Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference" by Warren St. John
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
