rhizoverbBeta
DictionarypuffShort burst of air
noun / verb

puff

PUF/pʌf/

A small rounded burst of air or smoke.

The boy exhales a small puff of visible breath into the cold air.

A young East Asian boy in a cobalt winter coat and rust scarf exhales one small visible cloud of breath into cold air. Side view of the face and chest, lips gently rounded; the detached pale blue-gray vapor cloud is the clearest focal point against a white background. No cigarette, no steam kettle.
Etymology
puffMiddle Englishshort blast of air

The early noun puf denoted a brief blast of wind or an act of puffing. Its proposed Old English ancestry connects it with an imitative verb for blowing with the mouth.

In context

Site-42168:55
he lifts a cigarette from his mouth and reaches for the newspaper on his desk sending a puff of smoke into the air
READING ALL SCP-7000 CONTEST ENTRIES PART 2

More examples

  • A puff of wind lifts the corner of the napkin.
  • She blows out the candle with one quick puff.
  • The old engine puffs smoke as it starts.

Forms

puff · puffs · puffed · puffing

Similar words

gust
Usually a stronger rush of wind, not smoke or breath.
burst
A broader term for a sudden release, not necessarily rounded.