puff

I UK [pʌf] / US verb
Word forms "puff":
present tense I/you/we/they puff he/she/it puffs present participle puffing past tense puffed past participle puffed

1) [intransitive/transitive] to smoke a cigarette, pipe etc

puff on/at:

Grandad sat in the corner and puffed on his pipe.

2)

a) [intransitive] to breathe or blow out air noisily, especially because you have been running, climbing etc

He was puffing a bit when he reached the top.

b) to move while making a sound like someone breathing noisily

puff along/up/down etc:

The little train puffed along.

••

See:

huff I

3) [intransitive/transitive] to say something in a way that shows you are annoyed and offended, especially when this makes you look rather silly

"How dare you?" he puffed.

Phrasal verbs:

- puff out

- puff up

II UK [pʌf] / US noun
Word forms "puff":
singular puff plural puffs

1) [countable] the action of breathing in smoke from a cigarette, pipe etc

She put the cigarette out after a few puffs.

2) [countable] the action of blowing or breathing out air so that it makes a sound

Her breath came in short painful puffs.

a) a sound like someone blowing or breathing out air

the puff, puff of the old steam engine

b) British informal enough breath or strength to do something

We ran out of puff before we got to the top of the hill.

3) [countable] a small amount of smoke, wind, or air that comes and goes quickly

puff of:

There was a small bang, and then a puff of blue smoke.

4) [countable] a type of small pie made of pastry with something soft inside

a cheese/cream puff

5) [countable] something that someone says or writes in order to advertise or praise something in public

6) [uncountable] British informal the drug cannabis