definitions
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bouffant

[ boo-fahnt, boo-fahnt; French boo-fahn ]
/ buˈfɑnt, ˈbu fɑnt; French buˈfɑ̃ /
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adjective

puffed out; full: a bouffant skirt.

noun

a woman's hair style in which the hair is teased to give an overall puffed-out appearance and often combed to frame the face.

RELATED WORDS

hairdo, haircut, braid, headdress, dreadlocks, ponytail, do, cut, natural, bubble, chignon, pixie, bun, fade, bob, flip, coiffure, pageboy, flattop, beehive

Nearby words

boudin blanc, boudin noir, boudoir, boudoir grand, bouffancy, bouffant, bouffe, bougainvillaea, bougainville, bougainville, louis antoine de, bougainvillea

Origin of bouffant

1875–80; < French: literally, swelling (bouff(er) to swell + -ant -ant)
Related formsbouf·fan·cy [boo-fuh n-see] /ˈbu fən si/, nounsem·i·bouf·fant, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for bouffant

British Dictionary definitions for bouffant

bouffant

/ (ˈbuːfɒŋ) /

adjective

(of a hair style) having extra height and width through back-combing; puffed out
(of sleeves, skirts, etc) puffed out

noun

a bouffant hair style

Word Origin for bouffant

C20: from French, from bouffer to puff up
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 bouffant

bouffant

adj.

1869, from French bouffant, present participle of bouffer "to puff out," from Old French bouffer (12c.), from Vulgar Latin *buffare, probably ultimately imitative of puffing. As a noun by 1870. Earlier as a French word in English. First used of hairdo style 1955.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper