puffery en · NOUN
Pronunciation
Etymology
Etymology tree English puff Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āzios Latin -āriusnom. Latin -ārius Old French -ier Proto-Indo-European *-(i)yós Proto-Italic *-ijos Proto-Italic *-ios Old Latin -ios Latin -ius Latin -ia Old French -ie Old French -eriebor. Middle English -erie English -ery English puffery From puff + -ery.
Meanings
- (countable, uncountable) An act of puffing.
- (countable, uncountable) Excessive or false public praise.
-
(countable, uncountable) Superficial or insubstantial material; fluff.
Cigarheads even have a new magazine, a lavish, glossy two-pound package of pride and puffery called Cigar Aficionado.
1996 November 14, J. E. Lighter, “Blowing Smoke”, in The Atlantic, →ISSN, archived from the original on 12 Sep 2015:Harvest was promptly pegged as a "lite" group, a purveyor of pop puffery.
1990, Wayne Jancik, The Billboard Book of One-Hit Wonders, →ISBN, page 294:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| pufferies | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
Translations (14)
de Paffen (act of puffing) · de Anpreisung (fulsome public praise) · de Blasen (act of puffing) · de Lobeshymne (fulsome public praise) · de überschwängliches Lob (fulsome public praise) · de Fortblasen (act of puffing) · fr esbroufe (act of puffing) · de Aufblasen (act of puffing) · de Pusten (act of puffing) · de marktschreierisches Gehabe (fulsome public praise) · de marktschreierisches Anpreisen (fulsome public praise) · de Lobhudelei (fulsome public praise) · de Marktschreierei (fulsome public praise) · de Schmeichlerei (fulsome public praise)