Synonyms of bluffs

bluffs 1 of 2

noun

plural of bluff

as in cliffs

a steep wall of rock, earth, or ice

fossils embedded in a stone bluff that date from the Jurassic period

Synonyms & Similar Words

• cliffs
• escarpments
• palisades
• crags
• scars
• precipices
• scarps
• embankments
• buttes
• barrancas
• tors
• hogbacks
• cuestas
• declivities
• pitches
• bulwarks
• drop-offs

bluffs

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of bluff

1

as in fools

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

• fools
• tricks
• deceives
• gulls
• kids
• snows
• suckers
• teases
• dupes
• hoodwinks
• misleads
• hoaxes
• humbugs
• buffaloes
• deludes
• juggles
• misguides
• bamboozles
• gaffs
• cons
• strings along
• cozens
• misinforms
• has on
• sucks in
• cheats
• spoofs
• snookers
• gammons
• beguiles
• stings
• fakes out
• burns
• hornswoggles
• catches
• does a number on
• takes in
• has
• leads one down the garden path
• pulls one's leg
• pulls the wool over one's eyes
• swindles
• sticks
• rooks
• hustles
• fleeces
• defrauds
• mulcts
• flimflams
• puts on
• shortchanges
• chisels
• bleeds
• skins
• euchres
• diddles
• squeezes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• exposes
• reveals
• unmasks
• uncovers
• shows up
• undeceives
• debunks
• tells
• discloses
• divulges
• uncloaks
• unveils
• disabuses
• disillusions
• disenchants

2

as in pretends

to present a false appearance of

the basketball player bluffed a shot, then passed instead

Synonyms & Similar Words

• pretends
• simulates
• assumes
• passes (for)
• acts
• affects
• feigns
• shams
• fakes
• dissembles
• poses
• counterfeits
• professes
• plays
• makes believe
• puts on
• conceals
• forges
• masquerades
• imitates
• masks
• camouflages
• disguises
• impersonates
• lets on
• dissimulates
• feints
• playacts
• malingers

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of bluffs

Noun

The western diamondback copperhead can be found in multiple areas, with a preference for arid areas, rocky outcrops and bluffs. — Isa Almeida, Oklahoman, 21 Sep. 2026

Perched along the Illinois River near Oglesby, 18 sandstone canyons cut into towering bluffs, creating surprisingly dramatic views throughout the park—this is smack in the middle of farm country, after all. — Taryn Shorr-McKee, Midwest Living, 20 Sep. 2026

Mendocino, dominated by Victorian and New England-style saltbox houses, is built on bluffs overlooking the Pacific and surrounded by dramatic coast and forest. — Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2026

One of the best places to do exactly that is Vicksburg, where travelers can tour the Vicksburg National Military Park, stroll the historic downtown, visit the Old Court House Museum, and enjoy views of the Mississippi River from the city’s bluffs. — Abby Price, Travel + Leisure, 4 Sep. 2026

Foliage-seekers can alight in the town of Winona, Minnesota, located on an island in the Mississippi—where visitors hike, kayak, or fish amid craggy river bluffs carpeted with ever-changing treetops. — Jessica Puckett, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Sep. 2026

Bassist Randy Meisner was a Nebraska farm guy, raised in the shadow of prominent sandstone bluffs that guided dreamy Americans westward in the 19th century. — Grayson Haver Currin, Pitchfork, 30 Aug. 2026

Gaasterland said in her candidate statement that her top priorities include utility undergrounding, local control of land use decisions, and removing the train tracks from the bluffs while avoiding a new route that tunnels under Del Mar homes. — Luke Harold, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Aug. 2026

Verb

Though lovelorn and broke, Annie bluffs her way through the expensive and bizarre rituals. — John Wenzel, Denver Post, 30 Apr. 2026

Mulugheta, who employed a similar strategy with client Jalen Ramsey that successfully forced a trade during the 2019 regular season, does not come off as a man who cavalierly bluffs. — Michael Silver, New York Times, 29 Aug. 2025