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bluff1

[bluhf]
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adjective, bluff·er, bluff·est.
  1. good-naturedly direct, blunt, or frank; heartily outspoken: a big, bluff, generous man.
  2. presenting a bold and nearly perpendicular front, as a coastline: a bluff, precipitous headland.
  3. Nautical. (of the bow of a vessel) having a full, blunt form.
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noun
  1. a cliff, headland, or hill with a broad, steep face.
  2. North Dakota, Wisconsin, and the Canadian Prairie Provinces. a clump or grove of trees on a prairie or other generally treeless area.
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Origin of bluff1

1620–30; perhaps < Middle Low German blaff smooth, even, or < Middle Dutch blaf broad, flat
Related formsbluff·ly, adverbbluff·ness, noun

Synonyms

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1. forthright, open, honest; rough, crude. 2. abrupt, steep.

Synonym study

1. See blunt.

Antonyms

1. subtle.

bluff2

[bluhf]
verb (used with object)
  1. to mislead by a display of strength, self-confidence, or the like: He bluffed me into believing that he was a doctor.
  2. to gain by bluffing: He bluffed his way into the job.
  3. Poker. to deceive by a show of confidence in the strength of one's cards.
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verb (used without object)
  1. to mislead someone by presenting a bold, strong, or self-confident front: That open face makes it impossible for him to bluff.
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noun
  1. an act or instance or the practice of bluffing: Her pathetic story was all a bluff to get money from us. His assertive manner is mostly bluff.
  2. a person who bluffs; bluffer: That big bluff doesn't have a nickel to his name.
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Idioms
  1. call someone's bluff, to expose a person's deception; challenge someone to carry out a threat: He always said he would quit, so we finally called his bluff.
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Origin of bluff2

1665–75; perhaps < Low German bluffen to bluster, frighten; akin to Middle Dutch bluffen to make a trick at cards
Related formsbluff·a·ble, adjectivebluff·er, nounun·bluff·a·ble, adjectiveun·bluffed, adjectiveun·bluff·ing, adjective

Synonyms

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1. deceive, fool, dupe, delude, hoodwink.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

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British Dictionary definitions for bluffs

bluff1

verb
  1. to pretend to be confident about an uncertain issue or to have undisclosed resources, in order to influence or deter (someone)
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noun
  1. deliberate deception intended to create the impression of a stronger position or greater resources than one actually has
  2. call someone's bluff to challenge someone to give proof of his claims
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Derived Formsbluffer, noun

Word Origin

C19: originally US poker-playing term, from Dutch bluffen to boast

bluff2

noun
  1. a steep promontory, bank, or cliff, esp one formed by river erosion on the outside bend of a meander
  2. Canadian a clump of trees on the prairie; copse
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adjective
  1. good-naturedly frank and hearty
  2. (of a bank, cliff, etc) presenting a steep broad face
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Derived Formsbluffly, adverbbluffness, noun

Word Origin

C17 (in the sense: nearly perpendicular): perhaps from Middle Dutch blaf broad
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for bluffs

n.

see bluff (n.1).

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bluff

v.

1839, American English, poker term, perhaps from Dutch bluffen "to brag, boast," or verbluffen "to baffle, mislead." An identical word meant "blindfold, hoodwink" in 1670s, but the sense evolution and connection are unclear; OED calls it "one of the numerous cant terms ... which arose between the Restoration and the reign of Queen Anne." Extended or figurative sense by 1854. Related: Bluffed; bluffing.

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bluff

n.1

"broad, vertical cliff," 1680s, from bluff (adj.) "with a broad, flat front" (1620s), a sailors' word, probably from Dutch blaf "flat, broad." Apparently a North Sea nautical term for ships with flat vertical bows, later extended to landscape features.

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bluff

n.2

1844 as an alternative name for poker; from bluff (v.). As "an act of bluffing" by 1864.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Idioms and Phrases with bluffs

bluff

see call someone's bluff.

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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.