Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - puff

 I. verb  Etymology: Middle English, from Old English pyffan, of imitative origin  Date: before 12th century  intransitive verb  1.  a.  (1) to blow in short gusts  (2) to exhale forcibly  b. to breathe hard ; pant  c. to emit small whiffs or clouds (as of smoke) often as an accompaniment to vigorous action ~ at a pipe  2. to speak or act in a scornful, conceited, or exaggerated manner  3.  a. to become distended ; swell — usually used with up  b. to open or appear in or as if in a ~  4. to form a chromosomal ~  transitive verb  1.  a. to emit, propel, blow, or expel by or as if by ~s ; waft  b. to draw on (as a cigar, cigarette, or pipe) with intermittent exhalations of smoke  2.  a. to distend with or as if with air or gas ; inflate  b. to make proud or conceited ; elate  c.  (1) to praise extravagantly and usually with exaggeration authors ~ing their own work  (2) advertise  II. noun  Date: 13th century  1.  a. an act or instance of ~ing ; whiff  b. a slight explosive sound accompanying a ~  c. a perceptible cloud or aura emitted in a ~  d. draw 1a  2. a light round hollow pastry  3.  a. a slight swelling ; protuberance  b. a fluffy mass: as  (1) pouf 2  (2) a small fluffy pad for applying cosmetic powder  (3) a soft loose roll of hair  (4) a quilted bed covering  4. a commendatory or promotional notice or review  5. an enlarged region of a chromosome that is associated with intensely active genes involved in RNA synthesis  • ~iness noun  • ~y adjective  III. adjective  Date: 1943 of, relating to, or designed for promotion or flattery a ~ piece in the paper