Synonyms of bluffing

bluffing 1 of 2

adjective

as in pretending

Related Words

• pretending
• duplicitous
• hypocritical
• insincere
• dissimulating
• dissembling
• unscrupulous
• equivocating
• posing
• evasive
• untrustworthy
• unreliable
• unbelievable
• deceptive
• treacherous
• deceitful
• wily
• sneaky
• undependable
• underhanded
• sly
• tricky
• lying
• devious
• artful
• slick
• slippery
• fallacious
• untrue
• dishonest
• fibbing
• mendacious
• prevaricating
• false
• untruthful

Dissimilar Words

• truthful
• honest
• plain
• direct
• veracious
• open
• frank
• forthcoming
• outspoken
• forthright
• candid
• true
• credible
• believable
• out-front
• veritable
• plainspoken
• free-spoken
• freehearted
• openhearted
• foursquare

bluffing

2 of 2

verb

present participle of bluff

1

as in fooling

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

• fooling
• tricking
• deceiving
• kidding
• teasing
• conning
• cheating
• misleading
• duping
• deluding
• hoodwinking
• gulling
• snookering
• bamboozling
• hoaxing
• misinforming
• juggling
• suckering
• humbugging
• gaffing
• misguiding
• spoofing
• cozening
• sucking in
• catching
• stringing along
• stinging
• snowing
• gammoning
• faking out
• beguiling
• taking in
• burning
• having
• having on
• buffaloing
• hornswoggling
• doing a number on
• pulling one's leg
• leading one down the garden path
• pulling the wool over one's eyes
• swindling
• sticking
• fleecing
• defrauding
• hustling
• bleeding
• rooking
• mulcting
• putting on
• shortchanging
• chiseling
• squeezing
• flimflamming
• euchring
• diddling
• skinning

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• revealing
• exposing
• uncovering
• telling
• disclosing
• unmasking
• debunking
• showing up
• divulging
• undeceiving
• unveiling
• uncloaking
• disillusioning
• disabusing
• disenchanting

2

as in assuming

to present a false appearance of

the basketball player bluffed a shot, then passed instead

Synonyms & Similar Words

• pretending
• assuming
• simulating
• acting
• feigning
• affecting
• faking
• passing (for)
• dissembling
• counterfeiting
• shamming
• concealing
• posing
• professing
• playing
• forging
• putting on
• making believe
• imitating
• masquerading
• dissimulating
• disguising
• impersonating
• masking
• playacting
• camouflaging
• feinting
• malingering
• letting on

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of bluffing

Verb

This, the team says, leads machines to make moves a human would only do while bluffing—and follow up on them much better than humans. — Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 1 Oct. 2026

As for the threats to pull up stakes, most people in 1934 thought Hollywood was bluffing. — Thomas Doherty, HollywoodReporter, 19 Sep. 2026

To this end, bulls challenge each other for rights to cows by bluffing or by outright battles in which slashing antlers determine the victor. — Jim Zumbo, Outdoor Life, 10 Sep. 2026

The plan for the stadium could still collapse; the Bears’ billionaire owners could be bluffing to secure an Arlington Heights deal. — Gretchen Kalwinski, Chicago Tribune, 12 June 2026

If the prover is bluffing, the verifier will almost certainly find a flaw in the coloring after enough guesses. — Ben Brubaker, Quanta Magazine, 11 May 2026

That could mean sneaking into hospitals, or bluffing their way into funerals. — Brendan Ruberry, semafor.com, 29 Mar. 2026

And sometimes bluffing goes beyond saving face. — Literary Hub, 2 Mar. 2026

But some politicians and economists say the billionaires are largely bluffing. — Joe Garofoli, San Francisco Chronicle, 18 Jan. 2026