What does "cuff" mean?
Glove; mitten
Cuff
/kʌf/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Glove; mitten
- Grammar: cuff is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: handcuff, backhanding, band, bat.
- Useful contrasts: caress, free, free wrists.
- Usage evidence: I'm not good at speaking off the cuff.
How to use "cuff"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "cuff" 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 "cuff" 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 "cuff" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "cuff" 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 "cuff" 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 "handcuff" 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 "cuff", 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 Glove; mitten obsolete
- 2 A handcuff. informal, plural, plural-only
- 3 A blow, especially with the open hand; a box; a slap.
"The Sarazin sore daunted with the buffe / Snatcheth his sword, and fiercely to him flies; / Who well it wards, and quyteth cuff with cuff:"
- 4 The scruff of the neck. Scotland
- 5 the lap consisting of a turned-back hem encircling the end of the sleeve or leg wordnet
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 The end of a shirt sleeve that covers the wrist.
- 7 shackle that consists of a metal loop that can be locked around the wrist; usually used in pairs wordnet
- 8 The end of a pants leg when folded up.
- 9 A surgical procedure in which parts of the body that were not previously connected are stitched together.
Verb
- 1 To furnish with cuffs. transitive
- 2 To handcuff. transitive
- 3 To hit, as a reproach, particularly with the open palm to the head; to slap. transitive
"I swear I'll cuff you, if you strike again."
- 4 confine or restrain with or as if with manacles or handcuffs wordnet
- 5 To enter into a committed romantic relationship with (someone). slang, transitive
"cuffing season"
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 To fight; to scuffle; to box. intransitive
"While the peers cuff to make the rabble sport."
- 7 hit with the hand wordnet
- 8 To buffet.
"cuffed by the gale"
- 9 to get involved in a relationship with another person wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Example
"I'm not good at speaking off the cuff."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "cuff"?
Common synonyms include: handcuff, backhanding, band, bat, bilbo, blip.
How do you use "cuff" in a sentence?
I'm not good at speaking off the cuff.
How do you pronounce "cuff"?
Pronounced /kʌf/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English cuffe, coffe (“glove, mitten”), of obscure origin. Perhaps from Old English cuffie (“hood, cap”), from Medieval Latin cofia, cofea, cuffa, cuphia (“helmet, headdress, hood, cap”), from Frankish *kuf(f)ja (“headdress”), from Proto-West Germanic *kuffju, from Proto-Germanic *kupjō (“cap”). Cognate with Middle High German kupfe (“cap”).
Etymology 2
Clipping of handcuff.
Etymology 3
1520, “to hit”, apparently of North Germanic origin, from Norwegian kuffa (“to push, shove”) or Swedish kuffa (“to knock, thrust, strike”), from the Proto-Germanic base *skuf- (skuƀ), from Proto-Indo-European *skewbʰ-, see also Lithuanian skùbti (“to hurry”), Polish skubać (“to pluck”), Albanian humb (“to lose”). Germanic cognates include Low German kuffen (“to box the ears”), German kuffen (“to thrash”). More at scuff, shove, scuffle.
Etymology 4
Various etymologies: * As an English surname, from Middle English cuffe (“glove”); see cuff. * As an Irish surname, from mac duibh (“son of the dark one”), see Duff. * As a Cornish surname, from cuf (“kind, dear”), from Proto-Celtic *koymo- (“nice, dear”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱóymos (“village, home”); see home.