bluff

verb

/blʌf/

[intransitive, transitive]

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they bluff	/blʌf/ /blʌf/
he / she / it bluffs	/blʌfs/ /blʌfs/
past simple bluffed	/blʌft/ /blʌft/
past participle bluffed	/blʌft/ /blʌft/
-ing form bluffing	/ˈblʌfɪŋ/ /ˈblʌfɪŋ/

Idioms Phrasal Verbs

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bluff (something) to try to make somebody believe that you will do something that you do not really intend to do, or that you know something that you do not really know虚张声势；唬人；吹牛
- I don't think he'll shoot—I think he's just bluffing.我认为他不会开枪，我想他不过是在吓唬人。
Topics Personal qualitiesc2
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
Bluff is used with these nouns as the object:
way
See full entry
Word Originverb late 17th cent. (originally in the sense ‘blindfold, trick’): from Dutch bluffen ‘brag’, or bluf ‘bragging’. The current sense (originally US, mid 19th cent.) originally referred to bluffing in the game of poker.

Idioms

bluff it out

to get out of a difficult situation by continuing to tell lies, especially when people suspect you are not being honest（受到怀疑后）继续蒙混过关，靠说谎摆脱困境

bluff

noun

/blʌf/

Idioms

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[uncountable, countable] an attempt to trick somebody by making them believe that you will do something when you really have no intention of doing it, or that you know something when you do not, in fact, know it虚张声势的做法；唬人
- It was just a game of bluff.那只不过是唬人的把戏。
- He said he would resign if he didn't get more money, but it was only a bluff.他说如果不给他加薪他就辞职，但那不过是虚张声势而已。
see also double bluff
[countable] a steep cliff or slope, especially by the sea or a river（尤指海边或河边的）峭壁，陡岸

Word Originnoun sense 1 late 17th cent. (originally in the sense ‘blindfold, trick’): from Dutch bluffen ‘brag’, or bluf ‘bragging’. The current sense (originally US, mid 19th cent.) originally referred to bluffing in the game of poker. noun sense 2 early 17th cent. (as an adjective, originally in nautical use): of unknown origin.

Idioms

call somebody’s bluff

to tell somebody to do what they are threatening to do, because you believe that they will not be cruel or brave enough to do it要求…摊牌，要求…兑现其恫吓（因相信对方不至于或不敢这样做）
- She was tempted to call his bluff, hardly able to believe he’d carry out his threat.她很想逼他亮出底牌，并不相信他会做他威胁要做的事。

bluff

adjective

/blʌf/

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(of people or their manner人或态度) very direct and cheerful, with good intentions, although not always very polite直率豪爽的（尽管有时不够礼貌）
- Beneath his bluff exterior he was a sensitive man.他外表大大咧咧，但其实是个敏感的人。
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
Bluff is used with these nouns:
exterior
See full entry
Word Originadjective early 18th cent. (‘surly, abrupt in manner’): figurative use of bluff ‘steep cliff or slope’. The current positive connotation dates from the early 19th cent.