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
- 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
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“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
“I learned a thing or two about bluffing, believe you me. Edward Ashton’s got a full house, perhaps—we’ll call it a house full of Ashtons! But you’ve got four of a kind.”
From Literature
"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
“And, of course, I didn’t have a film festival. I had an idea for a film festival. So I was bluffing on both sides.”
From Los Angeles Times
"A lot of people thought he was bluffing on more than a few things," he says.
From BBC
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.
