buff

¹ American  

[buhf] / bʌf /

noun

1. a soft, thick, light-yellow leather with a napped surface, originally made from buffalo skin but later also from other skins, used for making belts, pouches, etc.

2. a brownish-yellow color; tan.

3. a buff stick or buff wheel.

4. a devotee or well-informed student of some activity or subject.

   Civil War buffs avidly read the new biography of Grant.

5. Informal. the bare skin, or the state of being nude.

   swimming in the buff;

   stripped to his buff.

6. Also called buffcoat.  a thick, short coat of buffalo leather, worn especially by English soldiers and American colonists in the 17th century.

7. Informal. a buffalo.

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adjective

1. having the color of buff.

2. made of buff leather.

3. Slang. physically attractive; muscular.

   Synonyms:

   burnish

verb (used with object)

1. to clean or polish (metal) or give a grainless finish of high luster to (plated surfaces) with or as if with a buff stick or buff wheel.

2. to polish or shine, especially with a buffer.

   to buff shoes.

3. to dye or stain in a buff color.

buff ² American  

[buhf] / bʌf /

verb (used with object)

1. (in a video game) to enhance (player characters' attributes or abilities) with a spell, skill, or item.

   If you buff your party with a skill that increases movement speed, make sure everyone is in the area of effect—you wouldn’t want to leave your healer in the dust!

2. to reduce or deaden the force of; act as a buffer.

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noun

1. (in a video game) a category of spell, skill, or item that enhances player characters' attributes or abilities.

   Your build is specific to your job class, so a DPS Shaman and a DPS Druid might bring different buffs.

2. Chiefly British Dialect. a blow; slap.

buff ¹ British  

/ bʌf /

noun

1. 1. a soft thick flexible undyed leather made chiefly from the skins of buffalo, oxen, and elk

   2. ( as modifier )

      a buff coat

2. 1. a dull yellow or yellowish-brown colour

   2. ( as adjective )

      buff paint

3. Also called: buffer. 

   1. a cloth or pad of material used for polishing an object

   2. a flexible disc or wheel impregnated with a fine abrasive for polishing metals, etc, with a power tool

4. informal one's bare skin (esp in the phrase in the buff )

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verb

1. to clean or polish (a metal, floor, shoes, etc) with a buff

2. to remove the grain surface of (a leather)

buff ² British  

/ bʌf /

verb

1. (tr) to deaden the force of

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noun

1. archaic a blow or buffet (now only in the phrase blind man's buff )

buff ³ British  

/ bʌf /

noun

1. informal an expert on or devotee of a given subject

   a cheese buff

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buff Idioms  

1. see in the buff.

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Usage

What else does buff mean? Buff originally refers to light-yellow leather made from buffalo skins. It has taken on many slang terms, though, including:

• being naked
• shining up something
• being muscular and fit
• being particularly knowledgeable about something
• and, in gaming lingo, strengthening a player's stats.

Other Word Forms

• buffability noun
• buffable adjective

Etymology

Origin of buff¹

First recorded in 1545–55; 1900–05 buff ¹ for def. 4; earlier buffe “wild ox,” back formation from buffle, from Middle French, from Late Latin būfalus; buffalo; buff ¹ ( def. 4 ) originally a person enthusiastic about firefighting and firefighters, allegedly after the buff-colored uniforms once worn by volunteer firefighters in New York City

Origin of buff²

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English buffe “blow; clash.” back formation from buffet ²

Example Sentences

But these contestants are colorful, and confusingly buff, AI fruit characters.

From The Wall Street Journal

From its exotic location to the now-iconic buffs, “Survivor” established a world all its own, complete with a unique lexicon of immunity challenges, tribal council and Probst’s signature catchphrase, “The tribe has spoken.”

From Los Angeles Times

Miller, who died in 2012, was a labor history buff who realized that highly skilled workers often developed elaborate ethical codes that promoted solidarity with other employees.

From Los Angeles Times

Now, families and fitness buffs fill up well-lit public plazas at night.

From The Wall Street Journal

Movie buffs can bet on the official categories plus some unorthodox ones, such as whether host Conan O’Brien will say “artificial intelligence.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• admirer
• aficionado
• devotee
• expert
• fan
• fiend
• freak
• lover