stuff

1 of 2

noun

ˈstəf 

1

: materials, supplies, or equipment used in various activities: such as

a

obsolete : military baggage

b

: personal property

2

: material to be manufactured, wrought, or used in construction

clear half-inch pine stuff

—Emily Holt

3

: a finished textile suitable for clothing

especially : wool or worsted material

4

a

: literary or artistic production

b

: writing, discourse, talk, or ideas of little value : trash

5

a

: an unspecified material substance or aggregate of matter

volcanic rock is curious stuff

b

: something (as a drug or food) consumed or introduced into the body by humans

c

: a matter to be considered

the truth was heady stuff

long-term policy stuff

d

: a group or scattering of miscellaneous objects or articles

pick that stuff up off the floor

also : nonphysical unspecified material

conservation and … all kinds of good stuff

—Eric Korn

6

a

: fundamental material : substance

the stuff of greatness

b

: subject matter

a teacher who knows her stuff

7

: special knowledge or capability

showing their stuff

8

a

: spin imparted to a thrown or hit ball to make it curve or change course

b

: the movement of a baseball pitch out of its apparent line of flight : the liveliness of a pitch

greatest pitcher of my time … had tremendous stuff

—Ted Williams

9

: dunk shot

stuffless adjective

stuff

2 of 2

verb

stuffed; stuffing; stuffs

transitive verb

1

a

: to fill by packing things in : cram

the boy stuffed his pockets with candy

b

: to fill to satiety : surfeit

stuffed themselves with turkey

c

: to prepare (meat or vegetables) by filling or lining with a stuffing

d

: to fill (something, such as a cushion) with a soft material

e

: to fill out the skin of (an animal) for mounting

2

a

: to fill by intellectual effort

stuffing their heads with facts

b

: to pack full of something immaterial

a book stuffed with information

3

: to fill or block up (something, such as nasal passages)

4

a

: to cause to enter or fill : thrust

stuffed a lot of clothing into a laundry bag

b

: to put (a ball, a puck, etc.) into a goal forcefully from close range

5

—used in the imperative to express contempt

if they didn't like it, stuff 'em

—Eric Clapton

—often used in the phrases stuff it and get stuffed

6

: to stop (a ballcarrier) abruptly in a football game

stuffed the runner just short of a first down

Synonyms

Noun

• capability
• credentials
• goods
• qualification

Verb

• block
• bung
• dam
• fill
• pack
• plug
• stop

Examples of stuff in a Sentence

Noun

She got out the cooking stuff to bake some cookies.

computers, word processors, and stuff like that

I need a place to store my stuff.

Pick that stuff up off the floor.

Verb

The boy stuffed his pockets with candy.

She stuffed the laundry bag full.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

That’s the love of family and band and brotherhood that no presents, no cars, no art, no silly kids’ stuff could ever, ever replace. —Katie Bain, Billboard, 25 Apr. 2024

Busy defending Trump All good stuff, important information and context. —Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 24 Apr. 2024

Apart from all of the generative AI stuff Meta is doing, Zuckerberg was bullish about the company’s smart glasses with Ray-Ban. —Alex Heath, The Verge, 24 Apr. 2024

The lithium-ion batteries inside electric vehicles gobble up huge amounts of the stuff — over 300,000 metric tons in 2022. —Maddie Stone / Grist, Quartz, 23 Apr. 2024

Helping them out around the office, helping them style people, boxing things up; regular intern stuff. —Leah Faye Cooper, Vogue, 23 Apr. 2024

So one of the big questions is whether there will be some sort of cyber offense or cyber defense natural advantage as this stuff scales. —Lauren Goode, WIRED, 23 Apr. 2024

Premiere: Milwaukee sites and a hometown chef Episode 2: Miller Caves, High Life and Charlie Berens Episode 3: Contestants get cheesy in Oconomowoc Episode 4: Who has the 'Wright' stuff? —Rachel Bernhard, Journal Sentinel, 23 Apr. 2024

Many of us want to recycle responsibly and keep as much waste out of the landfill as possible, but recycling the wrong stuff can cause big problems at the two recycling facilities serving the Kansas City area. —Natalie Wallington, Kansas City Star, 22 Apr. 2024

Verb

This being a baseball story, the criminal complaint was stuffed with numbers: 19,000 bets. —Michael S. Schmidt, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2024

Taylor and Travis could grab a 6 p.m. table, stuff themselves with sushi, then walk around the Americana holding hands and buying Auntie Anne’s pretzels. —Emma Specter, Vogue, 11 Apr. 2024

The chef bakes the rolls from scratch, stuffing them with beef Milanese, or house made pork chorizo, refried beans, and melted cheese. —Regan Stephens, Peoplemag, 8 Apr. 2024

The defense also stuffed the run game with the exception of a few plays. —Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 6 Apr. 2024

Later, Wiggins stuffed Doncic, but Draymond Green turned it over immediately after. —Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 3 Apr. 2024

Other symptoms may include: Fever or feeling feverish Cough Sore throat Runny or stuffed nose Muscle or body aches Headaches Fatigue Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing Will the defamation case against Kari Lake hurt her Senate campaign fundraising? —Eshaan Sarup, The Arizona Republic, 2 Apr. 2024

Suburban Michigan is full of winding roads dotted with identical houses, strip malls stuffed with chain restaurants and big-box stores, and thoroughfares designed for cars, with pedestrian walkways as an afterthought. —Julie Beck, The Atlantic, 2 Apr. 2024

Avery sent a purse stuffed with pieces of eight to make sure the governor got the point. —Sean Kingsley, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English stuff, stuffe "military supplies, provisions, household goods, building material, fabric, filling of a pastry," borrowed from Anglo-French estuffe "provision, stock," noun derivative of estuffer, estoffer "to furnish (with supplies, arms), fill" — more at stuff entry 2

Verb

Middle English stuffen, stoffen "to furnish, equip (with arms, provisions), fill, cram full," borrowed from Anglo-French estuffer, estoffer (also continental Old French), probably borrowed from Old High German stophōn "put (something into something), cram full," going back to West Germanic *stoppōjan-, whence also Old English -stoppian, in forstoppian "to stop up, close completely" — more at stop entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing stuff

• and stuff
• be made of sterner/tougher stuff
• do one's stuff
• hot stuff
• kid stuff
• know one's stuff
• rough stuff
• show one's stuff
• small stuff
• strut one's stuff
• stuff it
• stuff oneself
• stuff one's face
• stuff the ballot box
• sweat the small stuff
• the hard stuff
• the right stuff
• the stuff of greatness
• the stuff of legend
• the stuff of legends

Kids Definition

stuff

1 of 2 noun

ˈstəf 

1

: supplies or equipment that people need or use

2

: writing, conversation, or ideas often of little or temporary worth

3

: something mentioned or understood but not named

sold tons of the stuff

4

a

: basic part of something : substance

the stuff of greatness

b

: body of knowledge

teachers who know their stuff

5

a

: actions or talk of a particular kind

how do they get away with such stuff

b

: special knowledge or ability

a person who has the right stuff will do well here

stuff

2 of 2 verb

1

a

: to fill by or as if by packing things in

was stuffing her pockets with candy

b

: to eat too much

don't stuff yourself with pizza

c

: to fill with a stuffing

stuffed the pillow

2

: to fill with ideas or information

stuffed their heads with facts

3

: to fill or block up

a sore throat and stuffed nose

4

: to put or push into something especially carelessly or with little concern

stuffed the clothes into the drawer

stuffer noun

Medical Definition

stuff

transitive verb

ˈstəf 

: to choke or block up (as nasal passages)

a stuffed up nose