Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- v. To blow in loud, violent gusts, as the wind during a storm.
- v. To speak in a loudly arrogant or bullying manner.
- v. To brag or make loud, empty threats.
- v. To force or bully with swaggering threats.
- n. A violent, gusty wind.
- n. Turbulence or noisy confusion.
- n. Loud, arrogant speech, often full of empty threats.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- To roar and be tumultuous, as wind; blow boisterously: as, the storm blusters without.
- To be loud, noisy, or swaggering; swagger, as a turbulent or boasting person; utter loud empty menaces or protests.
- [Only in ME.; perhaps a different word. Cf. LG. blustern, blistern, flutter in alarm.] To wander or run about aimlessly.
- To compel or force by mere bluster.
- To utter with bluster, or with noise and violence: generally with out or forth.
- n. The noise of a storm or of violent wind; a blast; a gust.
- n. A boisterous blast, or loud tumultuous noise.
- n. Noisy but empty talk or menace; swagger; boisterous self-assertion.
- n. Synonyms Turbulence, boasting, bragging, bullying.
Wiktionary
- n. Pompous, officious talk.
- n. A gust of wind.
- n. Fitful noise and violence.
- v. To speak or protest loudly.
- v. To act or speak in an unduly threatening manner.
- v. To blow in strong or sudden gusts.
GNU Webster's 1913
- v. To blow fitfully with violence and noise, as wind; to be windy and boisterous, as the weather.
- v. To talk with noisy violence; to swagger, as a turbulent or boasting person; to act in a noisy, tumultuous way; to play the bully; to storm; to rage.
- v. To utter, or do, with noisy violence; to force by blustering; to bully.
- n. Fitful noise and violence, as of a storm; violent winds; boisterousness.
- n. Noisy and violent or threatening talk; noisy and boastful language.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a swaggering show of courage
- n. a violent gusty wind
- v. blow hard; be gusty, as of wind
- n. vain and empty boasting
- v. show off
- v. act in an arrogant, overly self-assured, or conceited manner
- n. noisy confusion and turbulence
Etymologies
- From Middle Low German blüstren ("to blow violently") (Wiktionary)
- Middle English blusteren, from Middle Low German blüsteren. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“When he got older, when he turned into a fully mature male, I used the word bluster for lack of a better one.”
“MALVEAUX: Well, you know, this is really -- they have heard this kind of what they refer to as bluster before, the kind of very dramatic language by the president -- and rather the insulting language as well.”
“And the great thing about conservative bluster is that it ages so well. checkinout Says:”
“Also, the mess with the various watch lists are all left over from the Bush administration that was more interested in bluster than dealing with the hard problems they were faced with.”
Ridge: Terror suspect doesn't deserve 'full range' of rights
“On the pulse Mr Prescott, I think not; it's the usual bluff and bluster from a man who might actually be less intelligent than he seems.”
“This bluster is not going to fool anyone ... with any sense.”
“But, even taking into account the feckless expediency of his "get out now" rhetoric, Obama has shown a more sophisticated strategic intelligence than McCain has (and Hillary Clinton has, too) ... and no amount of bluster from the McCain camp can change that.”
“There was a lot of bluster from the Chinese police but I didn't feel much actual serious threat.”
“All the Republicans’ talk and bluster is meaningless so long as the bill passes.”
“And Dershowitz is as trained in bluster and bullshit as this blog’s most prominent weirdo genocidalist.”
Matthew Yglesias » Olmert Claims to Control US Foreign Policy
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘bluster’.
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Test Prep or Just for fun
Building a list for standardized test prep or just for learning some new words! Please add any words that you feel are important for the SAT/GRE/GMAT etc...
throng, morass, parley, facile, kismet, strife, jetsam, carrion, annex, harbinger, vestige, surreptitious and 575 more...
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GRE Barrons Wordlist
A complete Barron's Wordlist for GRE preparation. Your online flashcard replacement.
abase, abash, abate, abbreviate, abdicate, aberrant, aberration, abet, abeyance, abhor, abject, abjure and 4087 more...
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sound (loud)
words for loud sounds
( open list, descriptive, randomness )
also see:
http://www.wordnik.com/lists/onomatopo...crash, thud, bump, thump, boom, smash, explode, roar, scream, screech, short, yell and 168 more...
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Steroids
Nouns that end in "ster". The -er suffix (as in blaster) doesn't count.
hamster, filibuster, aster, master, mister, baluster, banister, barrister, monster, plaster, semester, bister and 56 more...
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Vocab_TC60Q_txtbook
most vocab in the textbook Page till end chapter 2.
forfeited, nullifying, avowed, libelous, sapped, fascistic, outclassed, revolting, ecumenical, looming, fretful, penitent and 86 more...
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Favorites
disparage, partisan, cupidity, hokum, tussle, odious, dastardly, overture, plane, chronic, peering, peer and 328 more...
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Odd Anagrams
Sets of anagrams that have contrasting or related meanings.
casual, causal, parental, paternal, prenatal, atoners, senator, treason, listen, silent, dictionary, indicatory and 110 more...
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Sense and Sensibility
Words from the book by Jane Austen.
shew, shewn, shewing, shewed, dupe, wither, rambled, extorting, cavil, rap, mildness, controuled and 133 more...
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kalidas's Words
crepuscular, mellifluous, ephemeral, diaphanous, zeitgeist, geisterfahrer, infinite, eternal, idyllic, azure, reminiscent, oblivion and 521 more...
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GRE Words
abjure, unswear, state, rescission, indemnification, ab, reny, abnegate, vitiated, vitiate, adumbrated, abash and 378 more...
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eggplantia5's Words
scintillate, marvel, cranberry, oscillate, triumph, bamboozle, grimace, magical, book, hexagon, cipher, compendium and 2727 more...
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kat's words
ecumenical, cacophony, clatter, marimba, bamboo, saffron, slice, mercurial, pomegranate, cranky, slipshod, scritch and 511 more...
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My GRE words
abase, abate, aberrant, abet, abeyance, abject, abjure, ablution, abnegation, abortive, abrogate, abscission and 140 more...
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Revised GRE Wordlist_2013
Vocabulary building for my quest of GRE 2013
ephemeral, esoteric, rhetoric, censure, egregious, pittance, dupe, mulct, paucity, alacrity, maintain, laconic and 997 more...
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ADW2
nudnik, temper, intercalate, cleave, scowl, chapfallen, malapropos, disport, annals, paean, paradisiacal, whet and 362 more...
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Vocab++
Words as I learn them.
fetid, mezzanine, hiatus, austerity, subliminal, resplendent, implacable, impugn, debase, exiguous, cirque, holster and 2538 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for bluster.

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