puffback
puffback Lexical Profile
puffback Game Scores & Validity
• noun
An explosive ignition of accumulated, unburned oil vapors within the combustion chamber of an oil-fired furnace or boiler, causing soot and smoke to be violently forced backward into a building.
"After the boiler malfunctioned, a severe puffback coated the walls and furniture of the living room in a fine layer of oily black soot."
Any of several species of small, insectivorous African songbirds in the genus Dryoscopus (family Malaconotidae), named for the male's distinctive habit of fluffing up the loose feathers on its lower back and rump during courtship or threat displays.
"During the mating season, the male black-backed puffback resembles a small flying cotton ball as it dramatically flares its back feathers."
• Rhymes for puffback
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
A compound of 'puff' and 'back'. In heating terminology, it refers to the backward expulsion of soot. In ornithology, it was coined in the 19th century to describe the bird's habit of fluffing its dorsal feathers.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.