buffalo
/ˈbʌf.ə.loʊ/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: 4.14 in modern English
15
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
3
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
An animal from the subtribe Bubalina, also known as true buffalos, such as the Cape buffalo, Syncerus caffer, or the water buffalo, Bubalus bubalis.
noun
A related North American animal, the American bison, Bison bison.
noun
Ellipsis of buffalo robe.
noun
The buffalo fish (Ictiobus spp.).
Example Sentences
- ""It must be a very wild stretch of country, and full of big game. I have always wanted to kill a buffalo before I die.""
- "And on this board were frightful swords and knives that are made in a great cavern by swinking demons out of white flames that they fix in the horns of buffalos and stags that there abound marvellously."
- "From the Indians who welcomed the pilgrims / And to the buffaloes who once ruled the plain / Like the vultures / Circling beneath the dark clouds / Looking for the rain / Well, they've been looking for the rain"
- "The feuds between Namsang and Borduria continued. In 1875-76 the dispute between the Namsang and Borduria arose about the buffaloes which were carried off by Borduria people from Namsang areas."
- "I'm just gonna let you have it. Probably in the midst of a kiss. Right when you think everything’s been healed up. Right in the moment when you're sure you've got me buffaloed. That's when you'll die."
- "The nontechnical administrator should never be buffaloed by the esoteric vocabulary and the endless jargon of the computer expert."
Etymology
Borrowed from Portuguese or Spanish búfalo (“buffalo”), from Late Latin būfalus, from Latin būbalus, from Ancient Greek βούβαλος (boúbalos, “antelope, wild ox”). Doublet of bubale and buffle.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈbʌf.ə.loʊ/
- British English: /ˈbʌf.əl.əʊ/
Usage
- American usage
- Slang
- Derogatory
- Offensive
- Transitive verb
- Archaic