a meal set out on a buffet at which guests help themselves
"We gathered around the spread to serve ourselves from the buffet."
usually inexpensive bar
"We decided to grab dinner at the buffet, where a wide variety of dishes were served for just five dollars per person."
A counter or sideboard from which food and drinks are served or may be bought.
"The guest sat down on the old velvet buffet to rest his feet."
A blow or cuff with or as if with the hand, or by any other solid object or the wind.
A low stool; a hassock.
In plain English: A buffet is a meal where people serve themselves food from large dishes placed on tables.
"We spent hours at the buffet eating all kinds of food until we were full."
Usage: As a noun, "buffet" refers either to an open-style meal where guests serve themselves or the act of being struck by something like wind or water. Use this word for self-service dining events rather than formal plated meals served at tables.
To strike with a buffet; to cuff; to slap.
"The bully threatened to buffet his cheek if he didn't pay back the money."
In plain English: To buffet is to hit something repeatedly with strong, violent blows that push it back and forth.
"The strong wind buffeted the small boat against the rocks."
The word buffet entered English as a noun for "a stool" via the Middle French side table before its meaning shifted to refer to a meal service or an act of hitting. Although it originally meant furniture, the term traveled into our language with this distinct shift in usage rather than retaining its original definition.