Meanings
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1
noun
A person who behaves in a ridiculous or foolish way.
He made a complete buffoon of himself at the party.
Thesaurus
Synonyms
1
noun
· a person who behaves in a...
clown
Word family
Forms
buffoons
Derived forms
buffonizebuffoonerybuffoonesquebuffoonicbuffoonishbuffoonismbuffoonlikebuffoonlybuffoonry
Etymology
From Middle French bouffon, from Italian buffone (“jester”), from buffare (“to puff out the cheeks”), of onomatopoeic origin. Compare Middle High German buffen ("to puff"; > German büffen), Old English pyffan (“to breathe out, blow with the mouth”). More at English puff.
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