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cuff
1[kuhf]
noun
a fold or band serving as a trimming or finish for the bottom of a sleeve.
a turned-up fold, as at the bottom of a trouser leg.
the part of a gauntlet or long glove that extends over the wrist.
a separate or detachable band or piece of fabric worn about the wrist, inside or outside of the sleeve.
an elasticized, ribbed, or reinforced band at the top of a sock or stocking.
a band of leather or other material, wider than a collar, sewed around the outside of the top of a shoe or boot to serve as a trimming or finish.
a handcuff.
I accessorized my costume with cuffs, a badge, and a toy gun.
Anatomy.rotator cuff.
Furniture.a horizontal strip of veneer used as an ornament on a leg.
Medicine/Medical.an inflatable wrap placed around the upper arm and used in conjunction with a device for recording blood pressure.
verb (used with object)
to make a cuff or cuffs on.
to cuff a pair of trousers.
to put handcuffs on.
The officer was quick to cuff the suspect and read him his rights.
Slang.to start an exclusive relationship with.
You’ve gotta cuff her if you want to keep her.
cuff
1/ ʌ /
noun
the part of a sleeve nearest the hand, sometimes turned back and decorative
the part of a gauntlet or glove that extends past the wrist
Also called (in eg Britain): turn-up.the turned-up fold at the bottom of some trouser legs
informalimprovised; extemporary
cuff
2/ ʌ /
verb
(tr) to strike with an open hand
noun
a blow of this kind
Word History and Origins
Origin of cuff1
Origin of cuff2
Word History and Origins
Origin of cuff1
Origin of cuff2
Idioms and Phrases
on the cuff,
with the promise of future payment; on credit.
without charge; with no payment expected.
He enjoyed his meal the more because it was on the cuff.
off the cuff,
extemporaneously; on the spur of the moment.
She made those comments off the cuff, and they came back to haunt her later.
unofficially or informally.
I'm telling you this strictly off the cuff.
Example Sentences
It’s here where he’s taken to the ground and cuffed.
“They just shoved and cuffed a sitting U.S. senator. How could you say you did not know who he was?”
While officers may not have known Padilla was a U.S. senator when they started going after him, they certainly did by the time the cuffs were snapping.
“Then why do you have a cat?” one guy asked, as Seuss sniffed his pant cuff suspiciously.
Phillips, 30, started this season in the IL while recovering from a partially torn rotator cuff he suffered in last year’s postseason.
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When To Use
Cuff can refer to the ends of sleeves or rolled pants, handcuffs, or, in the world of modern love, the act of going steady with someone over the winter months.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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