From Middle Dutch bluffen. Related to German verblüffen (“to stump, perplex”). Compare also English bluff, which may be borrowed from Dutch. This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.
bluffen
| Conjugation of bluffen (weak) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| infinitive | bluffen | |||
| past singular | blufte | |||
| past participle | gebluft | |||
| infinitive | bluffen | |||
| gerund | bluffen n | |||
| present tense | past tense | |||
| 1st person singular | bluf | blufte | ||
| 2nd person sing. (jij) | bluft, bluf2 | blufte | ||
| 2nd person sing. (u) | bluft | blufte | ||
| 2nd person sing. (gij) | bluft | blufte | ||
| 3rd person singular | bluft | blufte | ||
| plural | bluffen | bluften | ||
| subjunctive sing.1 | bluffe | blufte | ||
| subjunctive plur.1 | bluffen | bluften | ||
| imperative sing. | bluf | |||
| imperative plur.1 | bluft | |||
| participles | bluffend | gebluft | ||
| 1) Archaic. 2) In case of inversion. | ||||
Borrowed from English bluff. See the noun Bluff for more.
bluffen (weak, third-person singular present blufft, past tense bluffte, past participle geblufft, auxiliary haben)
| infinitive | bluffen | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| present participle | bluffend | ||||
| past participle | geblufft | ||||
| auxiliary | haben | ||||
| indicative | subjunctive | ||||
| singular | plural | singular | plural | ||
| present | ich bluffe | wir bluffen | i | ich bluffe | wir bluffen |
| du bluffst | ihr blufft | du bluffest | ihr bluffet | ||
| er blufft | sie bluffen | er bluffe | sie bluffen | ||
| preterite | ich bluffte | wir blufften | ii | ich bluffte1 | wir blufften1 |
| du blufftest | ihr blufftet | du blufftest1 | ihr blufftet1 | ||
| er bluffte | sie blufften | er bluffte1 | sie blufften1 | ||
| imperative | bluff (du) bluffe (du) |
blufft (ihr) | |||
1Rare except in very formal contexts; alternative in würde normally preferred.
bluffen