huff

Etymology

Probably an altered spelling of earlier *hough, represented by Scots hech (“to breathe hard, pant”). Compare also German hauchen (“to breathe”).

noun

1. A heavy breath; a grunt or sigh.
   With a huff, he lifted the box onto the back of the truck.
2. An expression of anger, annoyance, disgust, etc.
3. (obsolete) One swelled with a false sense of importance or value; a boaster.
   Lewd, shallow-brained huffs make atheism and contempt of religion the sole badge … of wit. 1667, Robert South, The Practice of Religion enforced by Reason
4. (draughts) The act of removing an opponent's piece as a forfeit for deliberately not taking a piece (often signalled by blowing on it).

verb

1. (intransitive) To breathe heavily.
   The run left him huffing and puffing.
2. (intransitive) To say in a huffy manner.
3. (intransitive) To enlarge; to swell up.
   Bread huffs.
4. (intransitive) To bluster or swell with anger, arrogance, or pride; to storm; to take offense.
   This senseless arrogant conceit of theirs made them huff at the doctrine of repentance. 1691, Robert South, On the nature and measure of conscience
   After all, she huffed, Emily (played by Lily Collins) has been living in the French capital for about a year and had a Champagne brand as her client at the fictional luxury marketing firm, Savoir, where she worked. 2023-01-20, Dan Bilefsky, “American Expatriates in Paris Wish Emily Cooper Would Go Home”, in The New York Times, →ISSN
5. (transitive) To treat with arrogance and insolence; to chide or rebuke rudely; to bully, to hector.
   […] I was ſent for by the marſhall, huffed and hectored ſtrangely, thretned, &c., in fine, muſte give bonds to the good behaviour; I refuſed, […] 4 February 1684, William Vaughan, “[Appendix.] XXXI. A Letter from William Vaughan, Esq. Containing a Journal of Transactions during His Imprisonment, &c. to Nathaniel Weare, Esq. Agent in London.”, in Jeremy Belknap, The History of New-Hampshire.[…], volume I, Boston, Mass.: Re-printed for the author, published 1792, →OCLC, page lix
   You must not think to huff us. 1720, Laurence Echard, The history of England: from the first entrance of Julius Caesar and the Romans to the end of the reign of King James the first containing the space of 1678 years
6. (transitive, archaic) To vex; to offend.
   Signior Riccabocca had become very intimate, as we have seen, at the Parsonage. But not so at the Hall. For though the Squire was inclined to be very friendly to all his neighbours he was, like most country gentlemen, rather easily huffed. 1851, Varieties in English Life, page 42
7. (transitive) To inhale psychoactive inhalants.
8. (transitive, draughts) To remove an opponent's piece as a forfeit for deliberately not taking a piece (often signalled by blowing on it).