Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

buffoon

buffoon ({not transcribed}) , noun

[French bouffon (compare Italian buffone, buffo, buffa, puff of wind, vanity, nonsense, trick), from bouffer to puff out, because the buffoons puffed out their cheeks for the amusement of the spectators. See Buffet a blow.]

A man who makes a practice of amusing others by low tricks, antic gestures, etc.; a droll; a mimic; a harlequin; a clown; a merry-andrew.

buffoon ({not transcribed}) , adjective

Characteristic of, or like, a buffoon.
Buffoon stories. — Macaulay
To divert the audience with buffoon postures and antic dances. — Melmoth

buffoon , intransitive verb

To act the part of a buffoon. [Rare]

Buffoon , transitive verb

To treat with buffoonery. — Glanvill