What does "buffet" mean?
A counter or sideboard from which food and drinks are served or may be bought.
Buffet
/bəˈfeɪ/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A counter or sideboard from which food and drinks are served or may be bought.
- Grammar: buffet is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: sideboard, abuse, agonize, ambo.
- Useful contrasts: a la carte meal, assuage, calm.
- Usage evidence: Two for the lunch buffet, please.
How to use "buffet"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "buffet" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- 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 "buffet" 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 "buffet" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "buffet" 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 "buffet" is acting as noun, verb 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 "sideboard" 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 "buffet", 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 A counter or sideboard from which food and drinks are served or may be bought.
"They stayed together during three dances, went out on to the terrace, explored wherever they were permitted to explore, paid two visits to the buffet, and enjoyed themselves much in the same way as if they had been school-children surreptitiously breaking loose from an assembly of grown-ups."
- 2 A blow or cuff with or as if with the hand, or by any other solid object or the wind. countable
"On his cheek a buffet fell."
- 3 a piece of furniture that stands at the side of a dining room; has shelves and drawers wordnet
- 4 Food laid out in this way, to which diners serve themselves.
"We'll be serving supper buffet style."
- 5 The vibration of an aircraft when flying in or approaching a stall, caused by separation of airflow from the aircraft's wings. uncountable
"The aircraft configuration was such that there was little or no warning of the stall onset. The inboard slats were extended, and therefore, the flow separation from the stall would be limited to the outboard segment of the left wing and would not be felt by the left horizontal stabilizer. There would be little or no buffet. The DFDR also indicated that there was some turbulence, which could have masked any aerodynamic buffeting. Since the roll to the left began at V₂ + 6 and since the pilots were aware that V₂ was well above the aircraft's stall speed, they probably did not suspect that the roll to the left indicated a stall. In fact, the roll probably confused them, especially since the stickshaker had not activated."
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 usually inexpensive bar wordnet
- 7 A small low stool; a hassock.
- 8 a meal set out on a buffet at which guests help themselves wordnet
Verb
- 1 To strike with a buffet; to cuff; to slap. transitive
"They spit in his face and buffeted him."
- 2 strike, beat repeatedly wordnet
- 3 To aggressively challenge, denounce, or criticise. figuratively, transitive
"Is Burns obscure because he was gay and therefore ignorable until the Gay Rights Movement began? Or does he largely deserve his neglect? An answer requires that one examine not only Burns' books, but also the critical environment in which he was much buffeted — which, we are told, drove him to an early grave."
- 4 strike against forcefully wordnet
- 5 To affect as with blows; to strike repeatedly; to strive with or contend against.
"to buffet the billows"
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 To deaden the sound of (bells) by muffling the clapper.
- 7 To struggle, contend; also in figurative or extended use: to move as if driven by force. intransitive
"Again the chirpy tone did nothing to pacify the woman holding on to her ankles. Soon Zoe was buffeting back and forward through the hole."
Example
"Two for the lunch buffet, please."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "buffet"?
Common synonyms include: sideboard, abuse, agonize, ambo, antagonize, automat.
How do you use "buffet" in a sentence?
Two for the lunch buffet, please.
How do you pronounce "buffet"?
Pronounced /bəˈfeɪ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Inherited from Middle English buffet (“stool”), from Middle French buffet (“side table”), from Old French buffet, of unknown origin. The modern pronunciation is remodelled after modern French buffet.
Etymology 2
From Middle English buffet (“buffet”), from Old French buffet, diminutive of buffe, cognate with Italian buffetto. See buffer, buffoon, and compare German puffen (“to jostle, to hustle”).
Etymology 3
From Middle English buffeten, from Old French buffeter, from the noun (see above).