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puff |
8 definitions found 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 Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Puff \Puff\, a. Puffed up vain. [R.] --Fanshawe. From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Puff \Puff\ (p[u^]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. `` To every puff of wind a slave.'' --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["o]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["o]l.), any bird of the genus {Bucco}, or family {Bucconid[ae]}. 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. 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. `` Puffed with wonderful skill.'' --Macaulay. From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Puff \Puff\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Puffed} (p[u^]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 WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: puff adj : gathered for protruding fullness; "puff sleeves" [syn: {puffed}] n 1: a short light gust of air [syn: {puff of air}, {whiff}] 2: a light inflated pastry or puff shell 3: exaggerated praise (as for promotional purposes) 4: a bed cover made of two layers of cloth filled with stuffing and stitched together [syn: {quilt}, {comforter}] 5: a fluffy pad for applying powder to the skin [syn: {powderpuff}] 6: 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" [syn: {drag}, {pull}] 7: forceful exhalation through the nose or mouth; "he gave his nose a loud blow"; "he blew out all the candles with a single puff" [syn: {blow}] v 1: smoke with puffs; "puff a cigar" 2: suck in or take as of air; "draw a deep breath"; draw on a cigarette" [syn: {drag}, {draw}] 3: breathe noisily, as when one is exhausted; "The runners reached the finish line panting heavily" [syn: {pant}, {gasp}, {heave}] 4: make proud or conceited; "The sudden fame puffed her ego" 5: praise extravagantly; "The critics puffed up this Brodaway production" [syn: {puff up}] 6: speak in a blustering or scornful manner; "A puffing kind of man" 7: to swell or cause to enlarge, "Her faced puffed up from the drugs" [syn: {puff up}, {blow up}, {puff out}] 8: blow hard and loudly [syn: {huff}, {chuff}] From Jargon File (4.2.3, 23 NOV 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 (13 Mar 01) [foldoc]: puffTo 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)
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