What does buffeted mean?
Buffeted is the past tense of the verb buffet, meaning to be struck again and again by powerful physical forces, most often wind and waves. A ship may be buffeted by a storm, or a walker's face buffeted by icy gusts on an exposed ridge. The word also has a well-established figurative use: people, institutions, and economies are said to be buffeted by crises, scandals, or market turmoil, conveying a sense of being tossed helplessly from one blow to the next. The connotation is generally one of hardship endured rather than defeat — something or someone battered but still standing. Derived from the French bouffer, meaning to puff or swell, the word entered English through the noun buffet, meaning a sharp blow. It carries a slightly literary tone that lends drama to descriptions of both weather and adversity, making it a favorite of journalists and novelists alike.
verbPast tense and past participle of "buffet": to strike repeatedly and forcefully, especially by wind or waves, or figuratively to subject someone or something to a series of hardships or setbacks.
- Struck repeatedly by physical force, especially wind, rain, or waves
- Figuratively subjected to repeated difficulties, criticism, or misfortune
"The small fishing boat was buffeted by towering waves throughout the night."
"The hikers were buffeted by gale-force winds near the summit."
"The government has been buffeted by one financial scandal after another."
The same French word that gave English the all-you-can-eat buffet also gave us 'buffeted' — one means a feast, the other a beating.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of buffeted
Buffeted comes from the noun buffet, meaning a sharp blow, which entered English from French in the Middle Ages. The French source is related to bouffer, meaning to puff up or swell, ultimately of uncertain deeper origin. The verb developed from the noun in the sixteenth century, describing repeated blows such as those dealt by wind and sea, and later extended figuratively to repeated misfortunes. It is thus a cousin of the modern dining-word buffet only through the same French root, though they now mean entirely different things.
Related word forms
How buffeted is actually used
Literary to moderately formal in register; common in journalism and narrative writing. The physical sense (wind and waves) is the dominant usage, while the figurative sense typically appears in political and economic reporting.
Easily confused with buffeted
"Buffet" can mean a meal laid out on tables or a piece of furniture, whereas "buffeted" is always the verb form meaning struck repeatedly by forces or troubles.