cuff 1
/kuf/ , n.
1. a fold or band serving as a trimming or finish for the bottom of a sleeve.
2. a turned-up fold, as at the bottom of a trouser leg.
3. the part of a gauntlet or long glove that extends over the wrist.
4. a separate or detachable band or piece of fabric worn about the wrist, inside or outside of the sleeve.
5. an elasticized, ribbed, or reinforced band at the top of a sock or stocking.
6. 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.
7. a handcuff.
8. Anat. a bandlike muscle or group of muscles encircling a body part.
9. Furniture. a horizontal strip of veneer used as an ornament on a leg.
10. Med. an inflatable wrap placed around the upper arm and used in conjunction with a device for recording blood pressure.
11. off the cuff , Informal.
a. extemporaneously; on the spur of the moment.
b. unofficially or informally: I'm telling you this strictly off the cuff.
12. on the cuff , Slang.
a. with the promise of future payment; on credit.
b. without charge; with no payment expected: He enjoyed his meal the more because it was on the cuff.
v.t.
13. to make a cuff or cuffs on: to cuff a pair of trousers.
14. to put handcuffs on.
[ 1350-1400; ME cuffe mitten; perh. akin to OE cuffie cap cuphia COIF ]
cuff 2
/kuf/ , v.t.
1. to strike with the open hand; beat; buffet.
n.
2. a blow with the fist or the open hand; buffet.
[ 1520-30; perh. kuffen, Norw, Sw dial. kuffa to push, shove ]