huff
go off in a huff
To leave in an angry, belligerent, or vexed manner. Don't go off in a huff like that, it was only a joke! Mary went off in a huff after her wife criticized her cooking.
See also: go, huff, off
huff and puff
1. To struggle or exert oneself physically. We huffed and puffed, but we did finally manage to get the couch up the steps.
2. To breathe very heavily or laboriously. Running to catch the bus has left me huffing and puffing. You really should quit smoking—look at how you're huffing and puffing after a single flight of stairs!
3. To make an exaggerated show of one's anger, often by making empty threats. A: "Are we in trouble?" B: "No, just let him huff and puff until he's done—he'll forget all about it by tomorrow."
See also: and, huff, puff
in a huff
In an angry, belligerent, or vexed manner. Don't go off in a huff like that, it was only a joke! Mary went off in a huff after her wife criticized her cooking.
See also: huff
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.
huff and puff
Fig. to breathe very hard; to pant as one exerts effort. John came up the stairs huffing and puffing. He huffed and puffed and finally got up the steep hill.
See also: and, huff, puff
*in a huff
Fig. in an angry or offended manner. (*Typically: be ~; get [into] ~.) He heard what we had to say, then left in a huff. She came in a huff and ordered us to bring her something to eat.
See also: huff
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
huff and puff
Make noisy, empty threats; bluster. For example, You can huff and puff about storm warnings all you like, but we'll believe it when we see it . This expression uses two words of 16th-century origin, huff, meaning "to emit puffs of breath in anger," and puff, meaning "to blow in short gusts," and figuratively, "to inflate" or "make conceited." They were combined in the familiar nursery tale, "The Three Little Pigs," where the wicked wolf warns, "I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house down"; rhyme has helped these idioms survive.
See also: and, huff, puff
in a huff
In an offended manner, angrily, as in When he left out her name, she stalked out in a huff. This idiom transfers huff in the sense of a gust of wind to a burst of anger. [Late 1600s] Also see in a snit.
See also: huff
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
in a huff
INFORMALCOMMON If someone is in a huff, they are angry about something. He stormed off in a huff because he didn't win. He resigned from the firm in a huff when he didn't get promoted.
See also: huff
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed.
huff and puff
1 breathe heavily with exhaustion. 2 express your annoyance in an obvious or threatening way.See also: and, huff, puff
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
ˌhuff and ˈpuff
1 breathe heavily while making a great physical effort: They huffed and puffed as they carried the sofa upstairs.
2 make it obvious that you are annoyed about something without doing anything to change the situation: After much huffing and puffing, he agreed to help.
See also: and, huff, puff
in a ˈhuff
(informal) in a bad mood, especially because somebody has annoyed or upset you: She went off in a huff.See also: huff
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
in a huff
Angry. The verb to huff in the late 1500s meant to bluster, or blow out puffs of breath in anger. It thus appeared in the nursery tale of The Three Little Pigs, in which the wolf threatened, “I’ll huff and I’ll puff and I’ll blow your house in” (published in J. Jacobs, English Fairy Tales, 1890). The noun usage with the current meaning of “angry” was first recorded in 1599 and has been so used ever since.
See also: huff
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
- go off in a huff
- in a huff
- (I've) got to take off
- be well off for (something)
- be well off for something
- (Now) where was I?
- be off with you
- be off for (something)
- be off for sth
- Bug off!