From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishbuffbuff1 /bʌf/ noun 1 → wine/film/opera etc buff2 [uncountable]CC a pale yellow-brown colour SYN beige3 → in the buff
Examples from the Corpus
buff• There is little to fight over except narrow policy niceties that interest only foreign affairs buffs and bore most voters.• I don't just mean football supporters, or race-goers, or athletics buffs.• The market for magazines for computer buffs is growing all the time.• Computer buffs have a different phrase for it: garbage in, garbage out.• Conspiracy buffs are having a field day speculating about White House motives.• "How many films did Hitchcock make?" "Ask Paul, -- he's a great film buff."• Describing himself as a history buff, Acosta offers his Web site primarily as a catalyst for further discussion.• Immature similar, but with whole upperparts mottled buff.• Alas, even the most well-meaning opera buffs have an unfortunate habit of making their favorite indoor sport sound impossibly complicated.buffbuff2 (also buff up) verb [transitive] CLEANto polish something with a cloth Sandra was buffing her nails. → buff up→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
buff• It also may be because she polishes her work to a high sheen, sometimes buffing away a pesky fact or two.• Some manicurists will then buff the nail with a chamois pad to impart a sheen on the finished item.• To age the look of the gourds, she buffs them with shoe polish.• The next stage is buffing to a gloss finish.buffbuff3 adjective 1 having a pale yellow-brown colour buff envelopes2 informal attractive and looking as if you do a lot of exercise – used especially by young people He’s so buff!Origin buff1 1. (1900-2000) buff “someone very interested in going to watch fires” ((1900-2000)), from the buff-colored coats worn by volunteer New York City firefighters in the early 19th century. 2. (1700-1800) buff “yellow leather made from buffalo skin” ((16-18 centuries)), from Old French buffle “wild cattle”, from Old Italian bufalo; BUFFALO3. (1800-1900) buff “bare skin” ((17-19 centuries)), from “leather”; → BUFF12 buff2 (1800-1900) → BUFF1; because leather was used for polishing ( → BUFF12) 