faff
To blow in puffs, blow gentlyTo blow in puffs, blow gently.
» Tom spent all morning faffing about on social media instead of working.
Том весь ранок пробайдикував у соціальних мережах, замість того, щоб працювати.
Meaning
3 senses(colloquial, intransitive)To blow in puffs, blow gently.
(Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, UK, intransitive)To waste time on an unproductive activity.
(archaic, transitive)To move (something) with a puff of air, to blow away.
Examples
2 sentencesTom spent all morning faffing about on social media instead of working.
Том весь ранок пробайдикував у соціальних мережах, замість того, щоб працювати. — deniko
Stop faffing around.
Не валяй дурня! — deniko
Origin
Originally imitative of wind or puffs of air (see verb senses "to blow in puffs", "to moveOriginally imitative of wind or puffs of air (see verb senses "to blow in puffs", "to move with a puff of air"). The noun is formed from the verb by conversion.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
faffs, faffing, faffed, faffedPhrasal verbs
2 phrasal verbsSynonyms
2 synonymsWord family
5 related wordsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle