in the buff

buff ¹

 (bŭf)

n.

1. A soft, thick, undyed leather made chiefly from the skins of buffalo, elk, or oxen.

2. A military uniform coat made of such leather.

3. A pale, light, or moderate yellowish pink to yellow, including moderate orange-yellow to light yellowish brown.

4. A piece of soft material, such as velvet or leather, often mounted on a block and used for polishing.

adj.

1. Made or formed of buff: a buff jacket.

2. Of the color buff.

3. buff·er, buff·est Slang Having good muscle tone; physically fit and trim: buff athletes lifting weights at the gym.

tr.v. buffed, buff·ing, buffs

1. To polish or shine with a piece of soft material.

2. To soften the surface of (leather) by raising a nap.

3. To make the color of buff.

Idiom:

in the buff

Naked.

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[From obsolete buffle, buffalo, from French buffle, from Late Latin būfalus; see buffalo.]

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buff ²

 (bŭf)

n. Informal

One who is enthusiastic and knowledgeable about a subject: a Civil War buff.

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[From the buff-colored uniform worn by New York volunteer firemen in the 19th century, originally applied to an enthusiast of fires and firefighting.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Thesaurus

Adj.

1.

in the buff - (used informally) completely unclothed bare-ass, bare-assed, in the altogether, in the raw, naked as a jaybird, peeled, stark naked, raw colloquialism - a colloquial expression; characteristic of spoken or written communication that seeks to imitate informal speech unclothed - not wearing clothing

Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.