buffer

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   Something that reduces the impact of a shock or protects one thing from another.

   Her savings acted as a buffer against the loss of her job.

2. 2
   verb

   To protect someone or something from harm or unpleasant effects.

   A good support network can buffer people from stress at work.

3. 3
   noun

   In computing, a temporary store of data while it is being moved or processed.

   The video kept pausing because the buffer could not load it fast enough.

Common collocations

• print buffer Noun + noun

Agent noun from obsolete verb buff (“make a dull sound when struck”) (mid-16c.), from Old French buffe (“blow”). The “boatswain's mate” sense is said to be popularly explained by the mate being a “buffer”, that is intermediary, between officers and men, but various other explanations have also been proposed.

Topics

External links

• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary
• Google Images