1
as in tricked
to cause to believe what is untrue
I bluffed the interviewer into believing that I could really speak French and thus would be the perfect person to serve in the newspaper's Paris bureau
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in pretended
to present a false appearance of
the basketball player bluffed a shot, then passed instead
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of bluffed
Any time the Patriots succeed with a new blitz or bluffed blitz in the first quarter, offenses expect to see it again later in the game.
—
Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 17 Jan. 2026
On the second interception, Simmons said Delaware bluffed as if an all-out blitz was coming before falling back into coverage and making the pick.
—Walter Villa, Miami Herald, 21 Sep. 2025
Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 17 Jan. 2026
On the second interception, Simmons said Delaware bluffed as if an all-out blitz was coming before falling back into coverage and making the pick.
—Walter Villa, Miami Herald, 21 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bluffed
Verb
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The scam reportedly tricked Russian drone operators into giving away the location of their Starlink terminals, allowing Ukrainian artillery and drones to target them.—
Simon Shuster,
The Atlantic,
27 Feb. 2026
-
The people staffing the scam centers might have been tricked by a false job ad.—
Susan Tompor,
USA Today,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The fake store contained an app that pretended to come from Brazil’s social security system, which Kaspersky analyzed and found to be malicious.—
Michael Kan,
PC Magazine,
10 Mar. 2026
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Federal agents pretended to be NYPD plainclothes officers looking for a missing child to kidnap a Columbia University student in university housing.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
4 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The quick shot that fooled Wallstedt was MacKinnon’s NHL-leading 43rd of the season.—
Jess Myers,
Twin Cities,
8 Mar. 2026
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You, too, can be fooled by warm March days into jumping the gun and making costly mistakes.—
David Beaulieu,
The Spruce,
7 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Davidson, who assumed her former role at the Kennedy Center in April 2023, intended to stay in the nation’s capital until the orchestra celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2031.—
David Zimmermann,
The Washington Examiner,
7 Mar. 2026
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Many actors have assumed the titular role over the years, with recent iterations including David Tennant, Jodie Whittaker, and Peter Capaldi.—
Declan Gallagher,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Residents should not be deceived by the unsupported and absurd revenue claims of the Moore administration.—
Torrey Snow,
Baltimore Sun,
11 Mar. 2026
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So some people got deceived and believed it.—
Chierstin Roth,
CBS News,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
These additional effects are entirely simulated.—
Billie Bugara,
Pitchfork,
7 Mar. 2026
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By comparing electromagnetic field readings from the test track and the benchtop device, the researchers confirmed that their device accurately simulated the test conditions.—
Ameya Paleja,
Interesting Engineering,
2 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bluffed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bluffed. Accessed 13 Mar. 2026.
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