puffy

adjective

ˈpə-fē 

puffier; puffiest

1

a

: swollen in size : bloated

puffy lips

… Hagrid gazed at him for a moment through his puffy, blackened eyes, apparently taken aback.

—J. K. Rowling

also : somewhat fat : chubby

Fatty Hicks, the shrill and puffy son of Nat, flapped his hand at the beautiful stranger …

—Sinclair Lewis

b

: having a puffed up form or appearance : soft, light, and fluffy

puffy white clouds

a puffy bun

puffy hair

It is very difficult to shake hands when you're wearing ski mittens. They're so puffy and fat it's like shaking hands with giant marshmallows.

—Ann M. Martin

Not far away is a Georgian bakery where we found long, puffy loaves of wonderfully crisp bread.

—Jeffrey Steingarten

2

: blowing in puffs : gusty

a strong, puffy wind

3

: characterized by vanity or ostentation : pompous, showy

puffy rhetoric

All of my small, puffy pride at being the skipper of a tiny unit in a great nation victorious over the forces of evil seemed to blow away before the drunken racket of those three thousand men.

—Louis Auchincloss

puffiness

ˈpə-fē-nəs 

noun

Symptoms include nausea and vomiting, muscle weakness, headache and disorientation, as well as bloating and puffiness in the face and fingers.

—Susan Gilbert

Examples of puffy in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Some of our go-to eye serums are marked down for Prime Day, too, including the COSRX Snail Mucin Peptide Under Eye Cream, which features snail mucin, peptides, and niacinamide to even out discoloration and soothe puffy areas. — Alanna Martine Kilkeary, Glamour, 23 June 2026

The difference in how much less puffy and sore my feet, ankles, and legs felt on the second flight was astounding. — Sophie Dodd, Travel + Leisure, 22 June 2026

This puffy tote features tons of interior pockets for easy organization, a water-resistant exterior, and weighs under a pound. — Annie Blackman, InStyle, 21 June 2026

For casual eats go to Bistro Bastardo, a Mexican burrito spot that always had a queue outside, as well as Úvozna, a burger joint near the Water Tanks, or Zaza for puffy sourdough pizzas. — Jaymi McCann, TheWeek, 16 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for puffy

• buffy
• fluffy
• scruffy
• stuffy