bluff: Meaning and Definition of

bluff

Pronunciation: (bluf), [key]
— adj., n. -er, -est,
—adj.
  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. (of the bow of a vessel) having a full, blunt form.
—n.
  1. a cliff, headland, or hill with a broad, steep face.
  2. a clump or grove of trees on a prairie or other generally treeless area.

bluff

Pronunciation: (bluf), [key]
— v.t.
  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. to deceive by a show of confidence in the strength of one's cards.
—v.i.
  1. to mislead someone by presenting a bold, strong, or self-confident front: That open face makes it impossible for him to bluff.
—n.
  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.
  3. 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.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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