bluffing

American  

[bluhf-ing] / ˈblʌf ɪŋ /

noun

1. 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.

2. 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.

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adjective

1. deceiving or misleading someone by a display of strength or confidence.

   Determining whether one faces a serious or bluffing adversary constitutes a major challenge in the bargaining process.

   “Advertising budget” is a poker term for the amount of chips a bluffing player is willing to invest to deceive opponents.

Other Word Forms

• unbluffing adjective

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

The game is open and there is no scope for bluffing.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 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

“It’s like a kind of global entry, but with a different possibility, considering that a lot of the time I’m not exactly bluffing it, but I’m trying my best to make this work.’

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 20, 2025

“You were bluffing, then. She was never in danger.”

From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo

Related Words

• corrupt
• crooked
• deceitful
• deceptive
• false
• fraudulent
• misleading
• shady
• sneaky
• underhanded
• unfair
• unprincipled
• unscrupulous
• untrustworthy