n.
Function: noun
Usage: often attrib
Etymology: buff, v., to react like a soft body when struck
Date: 1835
1 : any of various devices or pieces of material for reducing shock or damage due to contact
2 : a means or device used as a cushion against the shock of fluctuations in business or financial activity
3 : something that serves as a protective barrier: as a : BUFFER STATE b : a person who shields another especially from annoying routine matters c : MEDIATOR 1
4 : a substance capable in solution of neutralizing both acids and bases and thereby maintaining the original acidity or basicity of the solution also : a solution containing such a substance
5 : a temporary storage unit (as in a computer) especially : one that accepts information at one rate and delivers it at another
– buff · ered \ -f ə rd \ adjective