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13 dictionary results for: buffer

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

buff·er1

[buhf-er] Pronunciation Key

–noun

1.	an apparatus at the end of a railroad car, railroad track, etc., for absorbing shock during coupling, collisions, etc.

2.	any device, material, or apparatus used as a shield, cushion, or bumper, esp. on machinery.

3.	any intermediate or intervening shield or device reducing the danger of interaction between two machines, chemicals, electronic components, etc.

4.	a person or thing that shields and protects against annoyance, harm, hostile forces, etc., or that lessens the impact of a shock or reversal.

5.	any reserve moneys, negotiable securities, legal procedures, etc., that protect a person, organization, or country against financial ruin.

6.	buffer state.

7.	Ecology. an animal population that becomes the prey of a predator that usually feeds on a different species.

8.	Computers. a storage device for temporarily holding data until the computer is ready to receive or process the data, as when a receiving unit has an operating speed lower than that of the unit feeding data to it.

9.	Electronics. a circuit with a single output activated by one or more of several inputs.

10.

Chemistry.

a.	any substance or mixture of compounds that, added to a solution, is capable of neutralizing both acids and bases without appreciably changing the original acidity or alkalinity of the solution.

b.	Also called buffer solution. a solution containing such a substance.

–verb (used with object)

11.	Chemistry. to treat with a buffer.

12.	to cushion, shield, or protect.

13.	to lessen the adverse effect of; ease: The drug buffered his pain.

[Origin: 1825–35; buff² + -er¹

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

buff·er2

[buhf-er] Pronunciation Key

–noun

1.	a device for polishing or buffing, as a buff stick or buff wheel.

2.	a worker who uses such a device.

[Origin: 1850–55; buff¹ + -er¹

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

buff·er3

[buhf-er] Pronunciation Key

–noun British Slang.

1.	a foolish or incompetent person.

2.	a fellow; man.

3.	a chief boatswain's mate in the British navy.

[Origin: 1680–90; orig. uncert.

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

buff¹ (bŭf) Pronunciation Key
n.

A soft, thick, undyed leather made chiefly from the skins of buffalo, elk, or oxen.
A military uniform coat made of such leather.
A pale, light, or moderate yellowish pink to yellow, including moderate orange-yellow to light yellowish brown.
Informal Bare skin: swimming in the buff.
A piece of soft material, such as velvet or leather, often mounted on a block and used for polishing.

adj.

Made or formed of buff: a buff jacket.
Of the color buff.
buff·er, buff·est Slang Having good muscle tone; physically fit and trim: buff athletes lifting weights at the gym.

tr.v. buffed, buff·ing, buffs

To polish or shine with a piece of soft material.
To soften the surface of (leather) by raising a nap.
To make the color of buff.

[From obsolete buffle, buffalo, from French buffle, from Late Latin būfalus; see buffalo.]

(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

buff·er¹ (bŭf'ər) Pronunciation Key
n.

One that buffs, especially a piece of soft leather or cloth used to shine or polish.
A buffing wheel.

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

buff·er² (bŭf'ər) Pronunciation Key
n.

Something that lessens or absorbs the shock of an impact.
One that protects by intercepting or moderating adverse pressures or influences: "A sense of humor . . . may have served as a buffer against the . . . shocks of disappointment" (James Russell Lowell).
Something that separates potentially antagonistic entities, as an area between two rival powers that serves to lessen the danger of conflict.
Chemistry A substance that minimizes change in the acidity of a solution when an acid or base is added to the solution.
Computer Science A device or area used to store data temporarily.

tr.v. buff·ered, buff·er·ing, buff·ers

To act as a buffer for or between.
Chemistry To treat (a solution) with a buffer.
Computer Science To hold or collect (data) in a buffer.

[Probably from obsolete buff, to make a sound like a soft body being hit, of imitative origin.]

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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
buffer

1835, from obsolete verb buff "make a dull sound when struck," from O.Fr. buffe "a blow;" hence "something that absorbs a blow."

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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

buffer
noun
1.	(chemistry) an ionic compound that resists changes in its pH
2.	a neutral zone between two rival powers that is created in order to diminish the danger of conflict [syn: buffer zone]
3.	an inclined metal frame at the front of a locomotive to clear the track [syn: fender]
4.	(computer science) a part of RAM used for temporary storage of data that is waiting to be sent to a device; used to compensate for differences in the rate of flow of data between components of a computer system
5.	a power tool used to buff surfaces
6.	a cushion-like device that reduces shock due to an impact
7.	an implement consisting of soft material mounted on a block; used for polishing (as in manicuring) [syn: buff]
verb
1.	add a buffer (a solution); "buffered saline solution for the eyes"
2.	protect from impact; "cushion the blow" [syn: cushion]

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The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

buffer (bŭf'ər) Pronunciation Key

Chemistry A substance that prevents change in the acidity of a solution when an acid or base is added to the solution or when the solution is diluted. Buffers are used to make solutions of known pH, especially for instrument calibration purposes. Natural buffers also exist in living organisms, where biochemical reactions are very sensitive to changes in pH.
Computer Science A device or an area of a computer that temporarily stores data that is being transferred between two machines that process data at different rates, such as a computer and a printer.

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American Heritage New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition - Cite This Source - Share This
buffer

In chemistry, the components of a solution that can neutralize either an acid or a base and thus maintain a constant pH.

Note: Buffers are often used in medications designed to decrease acidity in the stomach.

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American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

buffer buff·er (bŭf'ər)
n.
A substance that minimizes change in the acidity of a solution when an acid or base is added to the solution. v. buff·ered, buff·er·ing, buff·ers
To treat a solution with a buffer.

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Free On-line Dictionary of Computing - Cite This Source - Share This

buffer
1. An area of memory used for storing messages. Typically, a buffer will have other attributes such as an input pointer (where new data will be written into the buffer), and output pointer (where the next item will be read from) and/or a count of the space used or free. Buffers are used to decouple processes so that the reader and writer may operate at different speeds or on different sized blocks of data.
There are many different algorithms for using buffers, e.g. first-in first-out (FIFO or shelf), last-in first-out (LIFO or stack), double buffering (allowing one buffer to be read while the other is being written), cyclic buffer (reading or writing past the end wraps around to the beginning).
2. An electronic device to provide compatibility between two signals, e.g. changing voltage levels or current capability.

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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Buffer

Buff"er\ (b[u^]f"[~e]r), n. [Prop a striker. See Buffet a blow.]

1. (Mech.) (a) An elastic apparatus or fender, for deadening the jar caused by the collision of bodies; as, a buffer at the end of a railroad car. (b) A pad or cushion forming the end of a fender, which receives the blow; -- sometimes called buffing apparatus.

2. One who polishes with a buff.

3. A wheel for buffing; a buff.

4. A good-humored, slow-witted fellow; -- usually said of an elderly man. [Colloq.] --Dickens.

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