# buffalo

Pronunciation: say "BUF-uh-loh" US /ˈbʌf.ə.loʊ/, UK /ˈbʌf.əl.əʊ/

## Noun

1. An animal of the subtribe Bubalina, such as the Cape buffalo or the water buffalo.
   - Simple: A big animal with large horns, such as the Cape buffalo or the water buffalo.
   - _The farmer hitched his buffalo to the plow and waded out into the flooded rice paddy._
   - _On the savanna, a herd of buffalo can drive off even a hungry pride of lions._
2. The American bison, a North American animal related to the true buffalos.
   - Simple: The American bison, a wild animal from North America.
   - _A bull buffalo wandered across the park road in Yellowstone, and traffic waited while it grazed._
   - _Millions of buffalo once roamed the Great Plains before hunters nearly wiped them out._
4. Any of the fishes of the genus Ictiobus, also called buffalo fish.
   - Simple: A kind of fish, also called a buffalo fish.
   - _He pulled a twenty-pound buffalo from the lake and mistook it at first for a carp._
   - _Commercial fishermen on the river net buffalo and catfish to sell at local markets._
5. Short for American buffalo, the gold bullion coin. — Ellipsis of American buffalo (“gold bullion coin”).
   - Simple: Short for American buffalo. A gold coin made by the US Mint that people buy for its gold.
   - _She bought a gold buffalo from a coin dealer as a hedge against inflation._
   - _The dealer priced each buffalo at a small premium over the day's gold price._
6. Short for buffalo robe, a cured bison hide with the hair left on, used as a blanket or wrap. *(US)* — Ellipsis of buffalo robe.
   - Simple: Short for buffalo robe. A bison skin with the fur still on, used as a blanket.
   - _The driver tucked a heavy buffalo around his passengers' knees before crossing the frozen river._
   - _She slept on the wagon floor, wrapped in an old buffalo that still smelled of woodsmoke._
8. A large person, or a stupid one; used as an insult. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A rude name for a big person or a stupid person.
   - _Get out of the doorway, you big buffalo. People are trying to get through._
   - _Only a buffalo like him would leave the tickets on the kitchen table twice._
9. An obese person, usually a woman; used as an insult. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A rude, unkind name for a very fat person, usually a woman.
   - _She still remembers the boy who called her a buffalo in seventh grade._
   - _A heckler yelled that the singer was a buffalo, and the crowd booed him out of the hall._
10. A nickel, the five-cent coin of the United States. *(slang, US)*
   - Simple: A nickel, a US coin worth five cents.
   - _Can you spot me a buffalo for the parking meter?_
   - _Back then a cup of coffee at the corner diner cost a buffalo._
11. Someone who looted during the American Civil War. *(slang, US)*
   - Simple: A person who stole things from others during the American Civil War.
   - _During the war, farmers along the river hid their horses whenever word came that buffaloes were riding through._
   - _The Confederate home guard caught a buffalo with a wagonload of stolen silver._
12. An offensive, derogatory term for a Black male. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A hurtful, racist word for a Black man.

## Verb

3. To confuse, deceive, or intimidate someone, or to outwit them. *(slang, US)*
   - Simple: To trick, confuse, or frighten someone, or to beat them by being smarter.
   - _Don't let the lawyers buffalo you into signing something you haven't read._
   - _The rookie pitcher buffaloed the league's best hitters with a slow, looping curveball._
7. To go hunting for buffalo.
   - Simple: To go out and hunt buffalo.
   - _Each fall the hunters rode west to buffalo on the open plains._
   - _They spent the winter buffaloing along the river and came back with a wagonload of hides._

## Verb

13. To hit someone with a pistol, typically over the head with its barrel. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: To hit someone hard with a gun, usually on the head.
   - _The marshal buffaloed the drunk cowhand with his revolver and dragged him off to jail._
   - _Rather than shoot the gambler, the deputy chose to buffalo him and haul him off unconscious._

## Origin

Borrowed from Portuguese or Spanish búfalo, from Late Latin būfalus and Latin būbalus, from Ancient Greek βούβαλος (boúbalos, “antelope, wild ox”). It is a doublet of bubale and buffle.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/buffalo (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).