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Synonyms

fuzz

1 American  
[fuhz] / fʌz /

noun

  1. loose, light, fibrous, or fluffy matter.

  2. a mass or coating of such matter.

    the fuzz on a peach.

  3. Slang. a man's very short haircut, similar to a crew cut.

  4. a blur.

    That photo is all fuzz.

  5. a distorted sound from an electric musical instrument, especially a guitar, produced by means of an electronic device.

verb (used with or without object)

  1. to make or become blurred or unclear (sometimes followed by up orout ).

    He fuzzed up the plot line with a lot of emotional nonsense. The image fuzzed and then disappeared.
fuzz 2 American  
[fuhz] / fʌz /

noun

Older Slang.

plural

fuzz, fuzzes

  1. Usually the fuzz the police; police officers collectively.

    The fuzz were called by a neighbor and three policeman showed up.

  2. a police officer or detective.

    Fuzzes caught the burglar trying to escape through the back alley.
fuzz 1 British  
/ fʌz /

noun

  1. a mass or covering of fine or curly hairs, fibres, etc

  2. a blur

"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

verb

  1. to make or become fuzzy

  2. to make or become indistinct; blur

"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
fuzz 2 British  
/ fʌz /

noun

  1. a slang word for police policeman

"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

Etymology

Origin of fuzz1

First recorded in 1595–1605; origin uncertain; perhaps a back formation from fuzzy ( def. ); compare Dutch voos “spongy, woolly”

Origin of fuzz2

An Americanism dating back to 1920–25; of uncertain origin

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.

The instrument also paved the way to an aesthetics of electricity—feedback, distortion, fuzz, sheer volume—that led to such genres as heavy metal, punk, grunge and shoegaze.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 14, 2026

Mixed in the crowd were young applicants with peach fuzz and older men and women, hair streaked with gray.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 29, 2025

"If you're driving in here, everything would be a fuzz to you on the notices because they are so small."

From BBC • Apr. 12, 2025

She leaves alpaca yarn outside so an Oak Titmouse can line her nest with the soft fuzz.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 30, 2024

His cheek had a soft layer of fuzz on it, a world away from her dad’s sharp scruffiness.

From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older

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.