bouffer

\bu.fe\

/\bu.fe\/ verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“bouffer” has 8 generated spelling variants in the French index at frequency #6,932. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#6,932
frequency rank, French
4,251
“B” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
13
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Enfler les joues.

Corpus desk

Index FR-bouffer · bouffer · French

bouffer · rank #6,932 · 8 variants · 13 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #6,932
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 13 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,251
  • PHOTO-FINISH boucher

Nearest frequency peer: boucher (-1 rank slots)

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Pairs de rang près de l'aimant d'erreurs « bouffer »

Même bande de rareté: utile si une faute tombe sur un lemme voisin

corpus weight

What this shows « bouffer » siège parmi ces pairs FrequencyWords; la profondeur des fautes est suivie à part dans le graphique d'édition.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

bouffer vs bouger
71% similar
bouffer vs buffet
71% similar
bouffer vs bouffon
71% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for bouffer
PropertyValue
Headwordbouffer
LanguageFrench
Part of speechVerb
IPA\bu.fe\
Letters7
Frequency rank#6,932
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs13
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Fréquence de l'aimant d'erreurs « bouffer »

Cette échelle va du noyau du français courant (gauche) jusqu'à la traîne des formes rares (droite).boufferse place ici:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

L'axe est logarithmique: chaque tic marque environ dix fois moins de fréquence. Dans la même bande de rareté figurent « boucher » (#6,931), « boys » (#6,933), « bonnet » (#6,930). Parmi 4,251 lemmes en « B », « bouffer » est au #6,932. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around bouffer (IPA \bu.fe\), averb. Corpus frequency is #6,932 among 4,251 “B” headwords. Wiktionary lists 9 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for bouffer, with forms such as "bbouffer", "bofufer", and "boufefr". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 13 confusable-pair relationships, "bouger", "buffet", "bouffon", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct French form is bouffer, spelled B-O-U-F-F-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Enfler les joues.
  2. 2
    Se soutenir de soi-même, avoir du volume au lieu de s’aplatir, en parlant de certaines étoffes, ou des cheveux.
  3. 3
    Gonfler, en parlant de plâtre et pousser en dehors, en parlant d’un mur.
  4. 4
    Enfler dans le four par l’effet de la chaleur, en parlant d’un pain.
  5. 5
    Souffler une bête tuée pour lui donner l’apparence de volume.
  6. 6
    Manger.
  7. 7
    Consommer excessivement.
  8. 8
    Vouer aux gémonies ; tenir des discours agressifs contre une catégorie sociale.
  9. 9
    Accaparer ; absorber ; accabler ; envahir.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how bouffer appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Le sac à vent était d’une belle peau, chaussée d’une taie d’indienne rayée bleu et blanc ; et tout le travail était agencé d’une mode si savante, qu’il ne fallait que bouffer bien petitement pour enfler le tout et envoyer un son pareil à un tonnerre. — (George Sand, Les Maîtres sonneurs, George Bell and sons, 1908, page 58)
  2. Les hennins affectaient diverses formes; […]. Ces coiffures, qu’on faisait d’étoffes précieuses, de tissus d’or ou d’argent, devaient encadrer la figure, et, bouffant largement aux oreilles, ne pas laisser voir les cheveux.

Synonyms

babouinerbecterboulottergraillercroûterjaffermangermastéguer

This word in other languages

puff(English)comer(Español)mampfen(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • bbouffer
  • bofufer
  • boufefr
  • boufer
  • boufferr
  • bouffre
  • buoffer
  • obuffer

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of bouffer - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

bbouffer1bofufer2boufefr2boufer1boufferr1bouffre2buoffer2obuffer2
Edit distance from "bouffer"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 French corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "bouffer"?
"bouffer" is spelled B-O-U-F-F-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is \bu.fe\.
What does "bouffer" mean?
As a verb, "bouffer" means: Enfler les joues.
What words are commonly confused with "bouffer"?
"bouffer" is commonly confused with "bouger", "buffet", "bouffon". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "bouffer"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bouffer" is \bu.fe\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "bouffer" come from?
"bouffer" is a French word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar French words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "bouffer", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked French headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

boucher#6,931adaptée#6,921discute#6,948épouser#6,916

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

conçue8 variantséquipé8 variantsveiller8 variantsvalise8 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list