American English

Definition of ruffle verb from the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary



    Verb Forms present simple I / you / we / they ruffle
    he / she / it ruffles
    past simple ruffled
    -ing form ruffling
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  1. 1to disturb the smooth surface of something, so that it is not even ruffle something She ruffled his hair affectionately. A light breeze ruffled the surface of the lake. ruffle something up The bird ruffled up its feathers.
  2. 2[often passive] ruffle somebody to make someone annoyed, worried, or upset synonym fluster Nothing ever seems to ruffle Susan. She was obviously ruffled by his question. He never gets ruffled, even under pressure.
  3. Idioms
    ruffle somebody's/a few feathers (informal)
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    to annoy or upset someone or a group of people The senator's speech ruffled a few feathers in the business world.
    smooth (somebody's) ruffled feathers
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    to make someone feel less angry or offended
See the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary entry: ruffle