💥 A dull sound 💥 To hit softly 💨 To puff gently 💨 A soft puff

to whuff

9.5

To make a quiet puffing sound often and gently

verb
/wʌf/

: resoplar

The old engine began to whuff gently as steam escaped from the pipe.

Examples

As the wind picked up, the chimney started to whuff quietly in the night.
The cat whuffed softly as it settled down.
The old engine began to whuff as steam escaped from the pipe.
The dog whuffed softly when it saw a stranger at the door.
The puppy whuffs when it plays with its toy.
The dog softly whuffed when it noticed the visitor approaching.
As night fell, the chimney started to whuff quietly in the breeze.

Synonyms

to chuff

vsto whuff

2 8.8

To make a puffing sound like a steam train or breathing hard

is much softer and muffled, not a loud heavy puffing sound

to sough

vsto whuff

Archaic

1 9.9

A soft, low sighing sound made by wind or water

is a series of soft muffled puffs rather than a continuous murmur

to pfft

vsto whuff

Informal

1 9.9

To make a short sound by blowing air through the lips to show disbelief

is a softer repeated blown noise rather than a short expressive sound

to whiffle

vsto whuff

7.3

To move or blow gently, making a soft rustling sound

is produced as soft muffled repeated puffs rather than gusting movement

to whoof

vsto whuff

9.9

To breathe out suddenly and make a puffing sound

is softer and repeated rather than a sharp sudden exhale

How Loud

to sigh

80 1.9

to whuff

9.5

to breathe

∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

whuff infinitive

whuffed past

whuffed past participle

whuffing present participle

whuffs third person singular

Etymology

Whuff can also mean to make a soft, muffled puffing sound, like a small engine or a dog breathing. This is the verb form of the sound word whuff, which is why we use it for repeated gentle blowing or puffing noises.