puff : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: puff	by the DICT Development Group
8 results for puff
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
puff adj gathered for protruding fullness; "puff sleeves" [syn: puff, puffed] n a short light gust of air [syn: puff, puff of air, whiff] a light inflated pastry or puff shell exaggerated praise (as for promotional purposes) bedding made of two layers of cloth filled with stuffing and stitched together Synonym(s): quilt, comforter, comfort, puff a soft spherical object made from fluffy fibers; for applying powder to the skin Synonym(s): powderpuff, puff thick cushion used as a seat Synonym(s): ottoman, pouf, pouffe, puff, hassock a slow inhalation (as of tobacco smoke); "he took a puff on his pipe"; "he took a drag on his cigarette and expelled the smoke slowly" Synonym(s): puff, drag, pull forceful exhalation through the nose or mouth; "he gave his nose a loud blow"; "he blew out all the candles with a single puff" Synonym(s): blow, puff v smoke and exhale strongly; "puff a cigar"; "whiff a pipe" Synonym(s): puff, whiff suck in or take (air); "draw a deep breath"; "draw on a cigarette" Synonym(s): puff, drag, draw breathe noisily, as when one is exhausted; "The runners reached the finish line, panting heavily" Synonym(s): pant, puff, gasp, heave make proud or conceited; "The sudden fame puffed her ego" praise extravagantly; "The critics puffed up this Broadway production" Synonym(s): puff, puff up speak in a blustering or scornful manner; "A puffing kind of man" to swell or cause to enlarge, "Her faced puffed up from the drugs"; "puffed out chests" Synonym(s): puff, puff up, blow up, puff out blow hard and loudly; "he huffed and puffed as he made his way up the mountain" Synonym(s): puff, huff, chuff
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Puff \Puff\ (p[ucr]f), n. [Akin to G. & Sw. puff a blow, Dan. puf, D. pof; of imitative origin. Cf. {Buffet}.] 1. A sudden and single emission of breath from the mouth; hence, any sudden or short blast of wind; a slight gust; a whiff. [bd] To every puff of wind a slave.[b8] --Flatman. 2. Anything light and filled with air. Specifically: (a) A puffball. (b) a kind of light pastry. (c) A utensil of the toilet for dusting the skin or hair with powder. 3. An exaggerated or empty expression of praise, especially one in a public journal. {Puff adder}. (Zo[94]l.) (a) Any South African viper belonging to {Clotho} and allied genera. They are exceedingly venomous, and have the power of greatly distending their bodies when irritated. The common puff adder ({Vipera, [or] Clotho arietans}) is the largest species, becoming over four feet long. The plumed puff adder ({C. cornuta}) has a plumelike appendage over each eye. (b) A North American harmless snake ({Heterodon platyrrhinos}) which has the power of puffing up its body. Called also {hog-nose snake}, {flathead}, {spreading adder}, and {blowing adder}. {Puff bird} (Zo[94]l.), any bird of the genus {Bucco}, or family {Bucconid[91]}. They are small birds, usually with dull-colored and loose plumage, and have twelve tail feathers. See {Barbet} (b) .
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Puff \Puff\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Puffed} (p[ucr]ft); p. pr. & vb. n. {Puffing}.] [Akin to G. puffen to pop, buffet, puff, D. poffen to pop, puffen to blow, Sw. puffa to push, to cuff, Dan. puffe to pop, thump. See {Puff}, n.] 1. To blow in puffs, or with short and sudden whiffs. 2. To blow, as an expression of scorn; -- with at. It is really to defy Heaven to puff at damnation. --South. 3. To breathe quick and hard, or with puffs, as after violent exertion. The ass comes back again, puffing and blowing, from the chase. --L' Estrange. 4. To swell with air; to be dilated or inflated. --Boyle. 5. To breathe in a swelling, inflated, or pompous manner; hence, to assume importance. Then came brave Glory puffing by. --Herbert.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Puff \Puff\, v. t. 1. To drive with a puff, or with puffs. The clearing north will puff the clouds away. --Dryden. 2. To repel with words; to blow at contemptuously. I puff the prostitute away. --Dryden. 3. To cause to swell or dilate; to inflate; to ruffle with puffs; -- often with up; as, a bladder puffed with air. The sea puffed up with winds. --Shak. 4. To inflate with pride, flattery, self-esteem, or the like; -- often with up. Puffed up with military success. --Jowett (Thucyd. ) 5. To praise with exaggeration; to flatter; to call public attention to by praises; to praise unduly. [bd] Puffed with wonderful skill.[b8] --Macaulay.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Puff \Puff\, a. Puffed up; vain. [R.] --Fanshawe.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Puffball \Puff"ball`\, n. (Bot.) A kind of ball-shaped fungus ({Lycoperdon giganteum}, and other species of the same genus) full of dustlike spores when ripe; -- called also {bullfist}, {bullfice}, {puckfist}, {puff}, and {puffin}.
From Jargon File (4.2.0, 31 JAN 2000) [jargon]:
puff vt. To decompress data that has been crunched by Huffman coding. At least one widely distributed Huffman decoder program was actually _named_ `PUFF', but these days it is usually packaged with the encoder. Oppose {huff}, see {inflate}.
From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (15Feb98) [foldoc]:
puff To decompress data that has been crunched by {Huffman coding}. At least one widely distributed Huffman decoder program was actually named "PUFF", but these days it is usually packaged with the encoder. Opposite: {huff}. [{Jargon File}] (1996-10-16)