Buffalo

/ˈbʌf.əl.əʊ/ name, noun, verb, slang

name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·Middle school level

Meaning at a glance

  • Primary sense: An animal from the subtribe Bubalina, also known as true buffalos, such as the Cape buffalo, Syncerus caffer, or the water buffalo, Bubalus bubalis.
  • Grammar: buffalo is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
  • Nearest alternatives: addle, amaze, american bison, american buffalo.
  • Useful contrasts: appease, calm, clarify.
  • Usage evidence: Me? I can't even begin to draw buffalo, deer and horses so you can tell them apart.

How to use "buffalo"

  1. Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
  2. Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "buffalo" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
  3. Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.

Meaning check

  • Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
  • Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
  • Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
  • Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?

Source and review context

This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "buffalo" in a final draft.

If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.

Before you rely on this definition

Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "buffalo" as the right word for your sentence.

If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "buffalo" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.

Compare nearby meanings

  • Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
  • Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
  • Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
  • Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.

Definition decision workflow

1. Identify the role

Check whether "buffalo" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.

2. Test the nearest option

Compare it with "addle" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.

3. Confirm with context

Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.

Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.

Final meaning check

Before publishing a sentence with "buffalo", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.

When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An animal from the subtribe Bubalina, also known as true buffalos, such as the Cape buffalo, Syncerus caffer, or the water buffalo, Bubalus bubalis.

    ""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.""

  2. 2
    any of several Old World animals resembling oxen including, e.g., water buffalo, Cape buffalo wordnet
  3. 3
    A related North American animal, the American bison, Bison bison.
  4. 4
    large shaggy-haired brown bison of North American plains wordnet
  5. 5
    Ellipsis of buffalo robe. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
Show 8 more definitions
  1. 6
    meat from an American bison wordnet
  2. 7
    The buffalo fish (Ictiobus spp.).
  3. 8
    A nickel. US, slang
  4. 9
    A looter during the Civil War. US, historical, slang
  5. 10
    A large or stupid person. derogatory, slang
  6. 11
    An obese person, usually a woman. derogatory, slang
  7. 12
    A black male. derogatory, offensive, slang
  8. 13
    Ellipsis of American buffalo (“gold bullion coin”). abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
Verb
  1. 1
    To hunt buffalo. transitive
  2. 2
    intimidate or overawe wordnet
  3. 3
    To outwit, confuse, deceive, or intimidate. US, slang, transitive

    "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."

  4. 4
    To pistol-whip. archaic, transitive

    "Whereupon the twelve-inch barrel of the Buntline Special was laid alongside and just underneath the Rachal hatbrim most effectively. The buffaloed cattleman dropped to the walk, unconscious."

Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A placename; A major city, the county seat of Erie County, New York, USA; very near Niagara Falls.

    "And in yet another deadly mass shooting, unfolding in Buffalo on Saturday, a heavily armed white man is accused of killing 10 people after targeting a supermarket on the city’s predominantly Black east side, writing in a lengthy screed posted online that the shoppers there came from a culture that sought to “ethnically replace my own people.”"

  2. 2
    A placename; A number of other places in the United States, including:; A small city in Scott County, Iowa.
  3. 3
    A placename; A number of other places in the United States, including:; A city, the county seat of Wright County, Minnesota.
  4. 4
    A placename; A number of other places in the United States, including:; A city, the county seat of Dallas County, Missouri.
  5. 5
    A placename; A number of other places in the United States, including:; A town, the county seat of Harper County, Oklahoma.
Show 14 more definitions
  1. 6
    A placename; A number of other places in the United States, including:; A census-designated place in Union County, South Carolina.
  2. 7
    A placename; A number of other places in the United States, including:; A town, the county seat of Harding County, South Dakota.
  3. 8
    A placename; A number of other places in the United States, including:; A small city in Leon County, Texas.
  4. 9
    A placename; A number of other places in the United States, including:; A town in Putnam County, West Virginia.
  5. 10
    A placename; A number of other places in the United States, including:; A town in Buffalo County, Wisconsin, not to be confused with Buffalo City in the same county.
  6. 11
    A placename; A number of other places in the United States, including:; A town in Marquette County, Wisconsin.
  7. 12
    A placename; A number of other places in the United States, including:; A city, the county seat of Johnson County, Wyoming.
  8. 13
    A placename; A number of other places in the United States, including:; A number of townships, including in Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio and Pennsylvania, listed under Buffalo Township.
  9. 14
    A placename; A number of places in South Africa.
  10. 15
    A placename; A town in South Gippsland Shire, south eastern Victoria, Australia.
  11. 16
    A placename; Ellipsis of Buffalo City. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
  12. 17
    A placename; Ellipsis of Buffalo County. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
  13. 18
    A placename; Ellipsis of Buffalo River. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
  14. 19
    A placename; Ellipsis of Buffalo Township. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis

Synonyms

All synonyms
addleamazeamerican bisonamerican buffaloanimalantelope

Example

"Me? I can't even begin to draw buffalo, deer and horses so you can tell them apart."

Common questions

What does "buffalo" mean?

An animal from the subtribe Bubalina, also known as true buffalos, such as the Cape buffalo, Syncerus caffer, or the water buffalo, Bubalus bubalis.

What is a synonym for "buffalo"?

Common synonyms include: addle, amaze, american bison, american buffalo, animal, antelope.

How do you use "buffalo" in a sentence?

Me? I can't even begin to draw buffalo, deer and horses so you can tell them apart.

How do you pronounce "buffalo"?

Pronounced /ˈbʌf.əl.əʊ/.

Etymology

Etymology 1

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.

Etymology 2

*(North America): Probably from buffalo (“American bison”) (Bison bison), since both cities are in regions that had wild herds at the time the names originated. Buffalo, New York was named after the Buffalo River, which an alternative etymology says is from French beau fleuve (“beautiful river”), but the more likely explanation is that it was named for the animal. *(South Africa): From buffalo (Syncerus caffer), subsp. Cape buffalo commonly found in the region.

More for "buffalo"

Synonyms

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