bouffant
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
-
(of a hair style) having extra height and width through back-combing; puffed out
-
(of sleeves, skirts, etc) puffed out
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of bouffant
First recorded in 1875–80; from French: literally, “swelling” ( bouff(er) “to swell” + -ant adjective suffix; see -ant)
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.
When it came to Margo’s bouffant hairstyle as the dream HungryGhost, stylist Jaime Leigh McIntosh used a combination of three wigs in pink.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2026
Cruise ship passengers were pictured wearing blue gowns, bouffant caps, and medical face masks as they disembarked on Sunday at the port of Grandilla de Abona in Tenerife.
From BBC ● May 11, 2026
James Whale’s 1935 freakquel, “Bride of Frankenstein,” imagined the companion briefly alive, sporting a white-streaked, electric-shocked bouffant before being killed by the Monster moments after her genesis.
From Salon ● Mar. 8, 2026
In one such instance, the official “Barbie” movie account responded to a fan-made image depicting Barbie with an atom bomb bouffant with the comment, “This Ken is a stylist.”
From New York Times ● Aug. 1, 2023
He liked the verve of her bouffant wigs, the drawl of her native Mississippi, as well as the severe eyeglass frames that belied the warmth in her eyes.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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.
